The Twilight Of The Immortal
by Vivli
Summary: Meet Olose Sampson, born 615 years before the events of Final Fantasy XI and by coincidence, immortal. This is the story of his adventures, taking place as Vana'diel takes shape around him. Finally completed! Now with a bonus chapter!
1. Loss

**THE TWILIGHT OF THE IMMORTAL**

**Author's Note: Firstly, a huge thank you for taking interest. Hopefully you'll enjoy this and leave a comment. Or not enjoy it and leave a comment. Or enjoy it and not leave a comment. You get the idea. Either way, thank you for checking out my story and I hope you enjoy it. **

**This story requires a bit of an introduction I feel, beyond the blurb. For starters, it's set 615 years before Vana'diel (and onwards). The lead character does in fact come from the FFXI Chronicles, or at least is featured in it, although I've had this story idea for years. It was never supposed to be applied to Final Fantasy XI, but actually should work quite well. The idea will be that you'll see Vana'diel evolve as the story goes on (since it should span quite a long period of time, and as per my plan should end back in the timeline we are used to).**

**A few pointers about the immortals in this story. If you want everything to be a surprise, skip this, but if you've read the FFXI Chronicles and know what Olose is, or just want to find out (it says in the first part of the first chapter anyway) then read on. Basically, he's a werewolf, but I've applied my own lore from all the werewolf myths. This means he might differ from other werewolves in other things slightly, and seem overpowered a bit. I mean, he's immortal for a start. The rest you'll discover as you read hopefully.**

**Because it's set in the past, I have to try and match this up a bit at least to Vana'diel lore, but don't know the dates. I found a site with the 'ages' of Vana'diel though, so will try and set it in times specific to that. I've currently set it as the age when San d'Oria is first expanding and at war with both the beastmen and Windurst (or at least attacking their camps). Sadly, I've been forced (against my will) to stop playing FFXI, but with any luck I'll be able to write this story anyway, but it may become inaccurate because of this. For that I apologise. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!**

**CHAPTER 1**

**LOSS**

Warm torches lit the inside of the gigantic cavern. Wooden shacks stood, some proudly displaying shop names and some merely forming warm and safe homes. A small village hidden beneath the ground. A young boy, only four years of age, looked up confusingly as he was huddled to the rear of the cave.

"What's happening?" He asked.

"Shh, Olose." Came the loving voice of his mother. "Prepare to run." Footsteps echoed throughout the cave, approaching. "Remember your positions people!" His mother ordered as the adults of the town got ready to attack, hunching behind doors, out of windows and behind crates, with bows ready.

"Our preliminary reports said they were armed to the teeth with silver weaponry." Came the voice of Olose's father. "So don't let them hit you." The footsteps increased in volume as an entire army of fully armoured figures could be seen approaching, silver swords and silver arrows glistening as they prepared to open fire.

"First line! Transform!" Olose's mother ordered, and the entire front line of warriors burst into gigantic werewolves, half-man and half-wolf, letting out a tremendous howl as they charged the invaders.

"Burn the monsters to the ground!" Yelled the leader of the invaders.

"I've got the cure for your curse right here!" Spat one of the enemy archers as he fired a silver arrow. The other archers quickly did the same and the transformed beasts were ripped apart, dropping down as their flesh burnt from the silver wounds.

"FIRE!" Screamed the mother of Olose. Arrows rained down on the invaders, but they blocked them with their mighty shields. They threw a torch at one of the wooden buildings, and it exploded into flames.

"CHARGE!" Yelled the leader of the invaders. "Wipe this village from the ground and finally purge Vana'diel of these accursed beasts!" Olose watched in terror as the fight erupted. The werewolves made powerful enemies, but they were severely outnumbered and cut down easily by the silver weaponry of their opponents.

"Come on, Olose!" Whispered a voice. "We have to go! We'll use the secret tunnel!" Olose was dragged by his older sister into a small and dark tunnel. One the boy had played so many games in over his short life, and now it was his only escape route. His sister was much older than he was, aged about fifteen, and much bigger. She squirmed through the tiny passage behind the boy as he darted onwards, his small size enabling him to move with ease. His sister wasn't so lucky. "Grr. I'm stuck." She grunted. Olose looked at her with wide eyes. "Run Olose! Go!" She told him, squirming. He grabbed her hand and pulled. "Run!" She instructed again. "Listen! Somebody betrayed us! This place was too well hidden to be found! You have to run! Find the traitor! You're the only one who can!" His sister suddenly screamed as she was pulled back and Olose watched as two of the enemy soldiers butchered her.

"Bah! There's another one in there!" One of the soldiers cried.

"Just a kid." Snarled the other.

"A kid can grow up." The first said.

"We'll catch him when we've mopped up here." The second told the first. "He won't get far."

The young boy bolted through the woods outside of the cave, running desperately and dodging between the foliage to avoid being seen, hiding under the darkness of the night. He made it. It was early morning as he approached a small village. He collapsed just outside of it, exhausted from his escape.

Olose Sampson sprung up in bed.

"Whoa, that was weird." He commented to himself, rubbing his head. He suddenly felt quite stupid about talking to himself. He collapsed back in bed, and sprawled down contently.

"Olose? Was that you?" Came a call from downstairs. "Are you awake?"

"Yes, Mum." Olose answered wearingly, shaking off the last memories of his strange dream.

"You coming down?" His mother asked.

"Nah, I'm content to sleep." Olose answered, flopping back in his bed. He was sixteen years old, but still lived with his parents, seeing it as a warm and loving home. He had no reason to leave.

"Talia's coming over in a minute. I'll tell her you didn't want to see her." His Mum called up.

"Talia?" Olose exclaimed, rolling out of bed and dropping to the floor. "Why didn't you say so?" He cried, struggling into the nearest clothes he could find. A dark brown shirt and old black trousers. He stumbled down the stairs, rubbing his eyes. His mother looked on him with a warm smile.

"You really need a haircut." She laughed.

"Only had one two weeks ago." Olose sighed. "My hair's been growing stupidly long stupidly fast." He added. "So when's Talia coming over?" His mother laughed knowingly.

"I don't know. In the next hour or so. She wants to go and pick some herbs and was wondering if you'd protect her for the journey." His mother explained.

"Protect her?" Olose sounded slightly surprised.

"Well, your master says you've become quite an able swordsman. He wants to see you taking on real challenges now." His mother told him.

"He said that?" Olose beamed proudly. "Well, I'll do it then." He paused. "You know me, anything for a lady." He added sarcastically. His mother laughed.

"Well, Prince Charming, before you go and save any damsels, you might want your sword." She mocked.

"Sword?" Olose repeated blankly. "Oh crap! I left it at the blacksmiths!" He bolted out of the house as fast as he could.

He ran down the central path of his tiny village, smiling as he passed all the figures he knew so well. He'd gotten his new sword a week ago for his sixteenth birthday. And promptly managed to chip the blade quite badly. He'd left it at the blacksmith's for repairs, and completely forgotten to pick it up. He suddenly stumbled. His vision blurred. He saw something. A wolf. It was howling. He stumbled and crashed down on the path. He shook his head and sat up.  
"Whoa." He commented. "Dammed dream. Must still be with me." He shook his head again fiercely, sending his wavy hair flying everywhere.

"Do you always talk to yourself in the street or is it a new development?" Came a sweet female voice. Olose looked up and leapt instantly to his feet. A young girl in a dark blue and white dress stood before him, with long curly blonde hair and an innocent smile.

"Talia!" He exclaimed. "I was, just, urrr, going to-"

"Get this?" Talia asked, holding up his sword. Olose let out a nervous laugh.

"Yeah. I kinda left it at the blacksmiths." He admitted nervously.

"That after you chipped it fighting that rock?" She mocked gently.

"I wasn't fighting a rock!" Olose protested. "I was practicing a kata and swung it _into _a rock."

"Well as long as you don't swing it into me later." Talia told him. "I am relying on you after all."

"I wont let you down ma'am!" Olose said with a sarcastic salute. Talia laughed and the two walked down the dusty path, taking in their village around them.

Olose loved his home. He was a trainee fighter, but dreamt of becoming a guard when he was older, to help protect the village he loved. It was entirely populated by humes, but that was mostly by coincidence and the central population of the area rather than some racial issue. It dealt mostly in farming goods, and was entirely self sustaining. The outside world didn't need to exist as far as Olose was concerned. Occasionally they'd run into the odd adventurer who came out past their home, but it was rare.

Olose looked into Talia's eyes and smiled, physically feeling his heart becoming warmer. She playfully smiled. She was always playful. Olose had no idea how she really felt. The two walked away from the village and across a large grassy field, up to their wastes in grass. Talia laughed.

"I love this place." She smiled, looking up at the wood overlooking the village. "It's so peaceful. Shame they never let me out here without protection in case a monster attacks."

"Never fear o' fair damsel, for I shalt protect you!" Olose cried sarcastically, lifting up his sword.

"What do you mean, fair damsel?" Talia repeated in a mocking tone. "I could still kick your ass."

"Is that a fact?" Laughed Olose. Talia stepped towards him.

"Oh yeah." She suddenly tickled Olose in the ribs and he fell over backwards, dropping his sword. She jumped on top of him, tickling him.

"Hey! No fair!" Olose laughed, rolling over and landing on top of Talia. He ticked her back and she laughed.

"Oi! Stoppit!" She squirmed. Olose laughed. The two paused, panting, Olose sat on top of Talia. They looked lustfully into each others eyes.

There was a sudden roar and Olose reeled back. For a moment he had seen that wolf again. There was another roar, and he could see the wolf snapping at him.

"Olose?" Talia asked gently, clearly worried. The wolf roared again and Olose fell backwards, fainting in the grass. "Olose?" Talia cried, running to his side. He didn't move. He was dreaming of wolves. He could see a pack of them, circling him, snapping at him. He felt like they were trying to sneak into his mind. Penetrate his thoughts with some dark message.

Talia was stood by his bedside, looking on with concern. Olose lay there, not moving. An older man, the doctor of the small town, turned to her and Olose's mother, who were both stood watching Olose.

"I'm afraid I'm not certain of the cause." The doctor admitted. "I would advise plenty of rest and water." He sighed, packing up his gear. "Keep him warm and well fed."

"I will, doctor. Thank you." Olose's mother said in reply.

"Thank Talia here for bringing him back." The doctor laughed. "That girl is stronger than she looks." Talia smiled, blushing slightly.

"I just hope he's going to be alright." Talia told the others.

"Don't we all?" The doctor gave in response. "I must be going." He added. "I do hope he gets better." The Doctor turned and left after a short pause. Talia looked down at Olose then turned to his mother.  
"I'm sorry." She whimpered. "This is all my fault."

"Not at all." His mother said kindly. "I'm sure it would have happened wherever Olose was. I think you saved him". Talia managed a smile, and sat down on the side of Olose's bed. She held his hand waiting for him to wake up.

She was sat by him even as day turned to night. The moon rose in the sky, a bright beaming full moon in a star filled sky. She stroked his hand.

"Please wake up, Olose." She said softly. "Please."

His eyes suddenly burst open, and is body arched upwards as he let out a tremendous growl. Talia backed away in shock.

Olose was surrounded by wolves. He could see them snapping and growling at him. He tried to shout at them, to warn them off, but his body wouldn't move. It wouldn't respond. One lunged at him. It bit into his flesh. He screamed.

Olose's arched body let out a blood-curling scream. Talia was now against the wall, pushed away from his body as far as she possibly could. Olose's body suddenly collapsed. Olose could see the ceiling, but he couldn't move. He couldn't speak. Talia was beginning to walk towards him. He had to get her away! He knew she had to leave.

"Talia…" He managed to groan.

"I'm here, Olose." She said, running to his side.

"No!" He suddenly cried as she got close, and his arm shot outwards, ripping through her flesh. His arm was no longer his own. It was covered in fur, huge and ended with a mighty claw. And Talia, the girl he cared for most in the entire world, was impaled upon it. She choked, and with her final breath could but watch as Olose's body underwent a horrific transformation. He eyes turned to a steely grey, becoming cold and lifeless. His entire face began to shift, becoming wolf like. His teeth began to become lethal pointed fangs. He ears grew out into gigantic dog like ears. His body grew tremendously in size, becoming three times larger than it had been before. Fur grew out over his body, and long bushy tail emerged from his back. The corpse of Talia slid down his arm, leaving a trail of dark blood as it went. She reached his shoulder, and he lunged down, biting her head off and hurling the corpse to the ground with a mighty howl.

Olose watched in terror. What was he? He couldn't stop himself. He felt like he was just watching events happen. He couldn't move his body. It moved at its own will. It turned to the door.

"Oh Altana…" He heard his mother say, frozen in shock. Olose leapt at her, and ripped both of her arms off. She stumbled back, blood spewing everywhere. She slumped down against the wall as Olose moved in, ripping her in two.

The gigantic creature leapt out of the window, shattering it. He landed, glass shards ripping through his body, but the wounds instantly healing. Guards saw him and rushed for him, swords drawn. He slammed them aside without effort, using such tremendous strength they were reduced to unrecognisable gory piles of blood.

The entire village could hear the slaughter. Some began to emerge from their homes. Some ran, others fought. They all died. Olose ripped them to shreds with his bare hands, all the while being forced to watch. His rampage didn't stop there. He quickly assaulted the houses, and the building. He ripped them down searching for more flesh in a frenzy. He killed everything he found. Cowering children that had tried to hide, the elderly who had failed to run, and anybody who attempted to be a hero and stop him. He killed them all and was forced to watch as he did. He couldn't even speak. He couldn't bring his body back under control. He wanted to break down and cry, but not even that could happen. His boy continued to kill, and his mind was powerless to stop it.

When Olose Sampson awoke again, he was lying in the woods, naked. He sat up, and suddenly the memories flooded into his mind. He realised what he had done. What he was. Who he had harmed. He dropped down, defeated. It was beyond words.

That dammed dream. It hadn't been a dream! It had been a memory! That cave! That town! It had been the last refuge of the werewolves! He could remember it now. Like some level of his memory had been unlocked. Hiding from society, they were the last of their kind. Werewolves. Lycanthropes as they liked to be called. They had formed a peaceful society. One where they could train the younger lycanthropes to control their emotions and their anger. One where they could teach them to never transform. But then they had been betrayed. Hunters had come and slaughtered them all. Olose had run. Olose had made it to the village. And somehow the memories had become repressed. He was the son of a werewolf! He had transformed that night! He was a monster! A monster with none of the control his family would have taught.

Talia. She was dead! He'd killed her! Just like that! No thought. No control. No second chance. No stopping. It had been him! He had killed the girl he loved! And he had never even said anything! There had been no chance for last words, no chance for an explanation of feelings, just one day she had been there, and the next she was not. She was gone. And it was his fault. All his fault.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" He screamed as loud as he could in total anguish, sobbing uncontrollably. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" There was nobody around that could hear. Nobody that was around that could care anyway. Olose crumpled over in a heap, sobbing. He'd killed her! He'd killed his parents! All gone! They were all dead! "Let it all be a dream!" He sobbed. "Let me wake up!" He curled up, crying. "Please! Let me wake up! Make it so that it wasn't real! Please! Oh Altana, please!" He sobbed.

This time Olose Sampson did not wake up.

He had killed them all. There was no going back. They were dead.


	2. Meeting

**CHAPTER 2**

**MEETING**

Four years had passed. Olose was living alone in the woods overlooking the ruins of his old home. People had come by shortly after the massacre, but finding no survivors soon turned away. Nobody ever found Olose, and nobody knew what had killed the villagers. Soon rumour began to spread of an evil monster that prowled the night. People shied away from the area, frightened by the rumours. The odd adventurer would come looking, hoping to find and slay the beast. They never found anything, of course. Except the unfortunate few that hunted on a night where the moon was full. They did not return at all.

Olose was stood in the darkness. Night had fallen once again, and this time the worse storm he had ever seen gripped the land. Lightning bolts tore through the sky, thunder crackled and rain poured down with more force than he had ever seen. His wooden shack had been swept away by the water, running down the slopes of the woods to where it had been constructed. He stood alone, watching the rain fall. He no longer looked like he had done four years ago. Now his hair was so long it reached down to the base of his spine, and he had a long unshaven beard hanging from his face. He wore basic clothes he had made from animal skins, and had been living off animals and monsters he had killed for the four years he had been in his self imposed exile. He had sworn to never go near a populated city again. It was too dangerous. For them, that is. He was too dangerous.

Now he was reconsidering. His home, and what little possessions he had made for himself had been swept away by the storm. He stood with his arms in the air, letting the rain blast down upon him. The ground beneath him was being churned by the force of the water, and fields all around were reduced to thick slushy mud. He stood beneath the trees, staring up into the storm. Would it be so bad? Could he live in a town again? If he left before every full moon? Nothing could come of it. And he could almost begin to live an ordinary life.

He laughed. No. That was no option. He couldn't risk it.

"Come on, nature!" He called out, laughing. "Do your worst!" Olose had taken a habit of speaking whenever he could to make sure he never lost his ability to form language, as he had heard would happen to those who were away from civilisation for lengths of time. A lightning bolt struck a tree nearby, and a branch fell down. He laughed. "Nice try!" He cried. He smelt the burning wood, and walked over to the branch, still slightly flaming. He kicked the wet mud over it, putting it out. His sense of smell had greatly evolved since his curse had manifested, and now he could pick out any scent in the entire area. He could smell the terrified animals as they tried to desperately find shelter. He could smell that a goblin had just been killed. He laughed. It would teach it for wearing that metal facemask. The lightning must have jumped straight too it. He was also glad that he couldn't smell any fire, only the smouldering wood near him. It meant that the lightning hadn't set the wood ablaze. He groaned, his hair plastered against his back by the rain, and began to slush through the mud, looking for some shelter.

He slid down a slope and came to a small pile of rocks. He knew the area well, and knew that those rocks were the caved in entrance to an alcove. He pulled away the rocks and slipped through the gap, finding himself in darkness. It was dry darkness though, so it was an improvement. He heard the thunder crash outside, and decided to venture deeper into what appeared to be a long cave.

His vision soon adapted to the darkness, another perk of his curse. He soon emerged in a huge cavern, and paused, feeling a chill. He recognised it. He was home.

The last refuge of the werewolves. In his four years of exile he had never explored the nearby caves, but could now see that his old home had been terribly close to where his original family had hidden. Clearly the soldiers had returned to ransack it, for all that was left now was the odd barrel and piece of rotting wood. Even the bodies and weapons were gone. He sat down in the cave, listening to the rain that echoed down the tunnel. He was dripping wet, but not cold. Over the years, he had discovered that any injury he took would instantly heal. His body would regenerate if anything went wrong, and counter any pain. It seemed to do the same for temperature. He was utterly unaffected by the cold or the heat. It would have made him a less effective killing machine. He had to be unstoppable in his quest to destroy everything. He sighed heavily. He felt as if there was a weight upon him, just being in the place that he had fled from so many years ago. His brain had repressed all memories, until the night of the first transformation. Now it seemed as clear as day. He hated that place. He hated the people in it. It was their fault. It was their fault he was what he was. He killed who he killed.

Olose cursed them, curling up on the floor and deciding it was time to sleep.

The sun shone through the trees as Olose emerged from the cave. He yawned, and looked around. There was a sense of aftermath in the air. Trees had been completely stripped of their leaves, the ground had been so churned it was now knee deep mud and the air was cool. The rain had stopped however, which Olose was glad of. He sighed, taking in the fresh air after a night in the damp cave. He noticed something strange. A scent on the air. Something that wasn't quite natural. It was perfume. A strong scent coming from somewhere. He curiously clambered down the hill and sloshed through the muddy woods, tracking the scent. There was somebody nearby, but not a warrior. Not an adventurer. An adventurer wouldn't smell like that.

He sensed the scent growing in strength, to such an extent it nearly overpowered his advanced sense of smell. Whoever the scent belonged to, she must be literally stinking of perfume for it to carry so far. He paused on top of another slope, looking down on a path that cut through the woods. It wasn't much of a path anymore, but more a marsh. The mud and waste from the woods and run down the hills onto the path, and the rain had turned it into a thick slosh. He scanned the area, and quickly spotted a hume girl. She looked extremely frustrated. She was stood still, but squirming oddly. It didn't take Olose long to figure out that she was stuck in the mud. He quickly approached her, moving quietly, deciding that he would have to free her.

Something glistened in the rising sunlight. An earring. He decided to take a good look over her. She was most definitely no adventurer. She was clothed in an overly formal black evening dress which tightly clung to her body. Her arms were bare, and he could see that her fists were tightly clenched as she struggled to move. Her fingernails were bright red, and showed up brightly against her unusually pale skin. Her hair was as black as her dress, worn up above her head in a fancy arrangement that was beyond Olose's ability to describe. She clearly had a lot of hair, but it was all worn above her head, leaving her think neck and face completely clear. Long diamond earrings hung from her ears, and Olose could easily tell that each one must have cost three times more than even the most expensive suit of armour. She was clearly very rich. He ran down the slope and sloshed onto the path. She quickly looked up, startled. Olose must have looked a little like a wild barbarian or a caveman, so he could understand her fear. She had deep brown eyes that went wide as his met hers. He looked over her face. It was heavily caked in make-up. Her lips were bright red, and looked like they were dripping with gloss. Her eyes were surrounded by thick eye shadow, making her brown eyes look darker. She was clearly very rich. And high up in status, judging by how she made herself appear. No adventurer, trader or even citizen would comfortably allow themselves to appear that way. Olose realised he hadn't done anything for quite a while when he saw that she was panicking, struggling desperately and trying to free herself.

Lady Arcadia De Lily was the daughter of two of the richest citizens in the whole of Tavnazia, a great city belonging to all five races. Her father had been a powerful Lord, who had helped to build the city and turn it into what it was to that day. And as his daughter, she had been risen in extreme nobility, only ever seeing the rich side of life and being delivered to the fanciest parties and meeting the richest and most influential citizens of all of Vana'diel. However, she had soon become old enough to function on her own, away from her parents. She was now nineteen, and her parents had decided to let her begin to see the world. She had decided to travel to the elvaan city of San d'Oria, despite the elvaan's natural alienation for other races, they had the grandest city in the land, and Arcadia had always loved it when they visited in her younger years. She had decided to journey there alone, but her parents had forbidden it. They had assigned to her a squad of body guards, but she had decided to dismiss them, being certain that she could manage the journey alone.

The storm the night before had worried her, but the rain had stopped and she had vouched to begin her journey, catching a chocobo and carriage out as far as it would take her before proceeding on foot. She had quickly become hopelessly lost, finding herself unable to remember the directions she had been given and having left her map with the dismissed bodyguards. She tried to journey onwards, but was quickly becoming worn down, not being used to travelling and lacking in the stamina required. Her feet quickly began to hurt, her stiletto heeled shoes being distinctly unsuitable to long journeys. However, due to her upbringing, she wasn't used to wearing anything less. She had quickly decided she needed to find somewhere to rest, and to receive directions. She soon found signs of a path, and decided that it must lead to somewhere. It turned out it led into a wood, and she decided it would be best to follow it in the hopes that there was a village hidden amongst the trees. She had managed to struggle through the path, despite the fact that it was quite muddy. It quickly became deeper, however, as she ventured within the woods. It didn't take long for her feet to sink completely. Her high heels cut through the mud like it was butter, and she became stuck.

She had struggled uselessly, but in the end was forced to concede defeat. Her parents had given her a link pearl to contact them if she got into too much trouble. She decided that it was time to use it. She had reached around her neck, removing the necklace that the light pink jewel was hanging from. Her soft well-moisturised hands ran over the pearl, and it slipped from her grip, splashing down in the mud. She reached to get it, but couldn't reach it. It had fallen too far away.

That was when she had known she was in trouble.

Now she was confronted by a ragged looking man, who was either about to help her or skin her alive. She couldn't hide her own fear. She trembled uselessly as the man approached her. He put his hands on her shoulders. She felt his rough hardened hands against her own soft and silky skin. He pulled gently, and she found herself lifted up, removed from the oozing mud. He placed her on the nearby slope, where she slipped slightly before regaining her balance. The man moved across the path, picking up her link pearl and throwing it to her. She missed the catch, but spent no time in swooping down and picking it up.

"Better?" The man asked. She nodded sheepishly. "You don't look like the type who will last long-" He paused, trying to think of an appropriate place. "-well, anywhere." He finally said. She looked at him, clearly frightened. "You have a name?" He asked, continuing casually. Arcadia looked at him for a moment, before suddenly remembering to speak.

"My apologies." She said in a voice dripping with formality. "I am Lady Arcadia De Lily, daughter of Lord Valance." The man smirked.

"And what is the daughter of Lord Valance doing out here?" He asked, having absolutely no idea who Lord Valance was, but deciding to keep asking questions. Each time he spoke he asked the questions quickly and casually, in a matter of fact manner. It put Arcadia on edge. It was if he just needed to know the facts, so came straight out and asked. She was from a world of formality and strict rules, even in conversation, so she was feeling quite out of place when confronted with this strange figure.

"Urm, I'm a little lost, to be honest." She admitted awkwardly.

Olose stumbled back for a moment, caught off guard by a memory. Something in her eyes as she had said that, some innocence shining through, had reminded him of someone. Underneath all the make-up, jewellery, fancy clothes and formality, for a moment, he had been reminded of Talia. He knew at that moment that he had to help her. He had to help her find her way. He had been hidden for four years, but he was still human, he still knew when to help and to be kind. He swore he would make sure he helped her. Perhaps, in time, he decided, he could help enough to make up for the mistakes he had made. For what he had done.

"Well, where were you headed?" Olose asked curiously.

"I am heading to San d'Oria." She answered in an irritatingly posh voice. "I am to make acquaintance with-"

"You can just say 'I'm going to San' you know?" Olose sighed. She looked at oddly. "Forget it." He added. "I've got a rough idea of where it is, and I know it's not the way you were headed." He said after a pause. "I can show you the way. At least until you encounter a guard or something. San d'Oria have their troops marching everywhere, conquering anything that moves at the moment, so it can't be too hard to find them." Arcadia nodded. She decided that it was much better than having to crawl back to her parents for help. They'd never have to know that she got help.

"I thank you from the depths of my heart." She said with an overly formal courtesy. Olose rolled his eyes. "I will make sure you're rewarded when we reach San d'Oria!" She added enthusiastically. Olose smiled. It was weeks until the next full moon. He was safe for the moment. He decided some company could prove interesting, even if it was this potentially annoying girl.

"Come on, we'll cut across the woods." He said, climbing up the muddy slope. Arcadia tried to follow, but slipped uselessly. She tried to get her footing again, but slipped forwards. She put her hands down to steady herself, and suddenly recoiled, realising they were now covered in mud. She stumbled back onto the path, and sunk once more, becoming stuck again. "Oh, I can see this is going to be fun." Laughed Olose sarcastically. Arcadia managed an innocent smile.

Some time later, Arcadia was struggling through the hilly woods behind Olose. She was now covered in mud, having slipped over multiple times. She slid down a hill, loosing her footing again. She landed roughly. Olose turned around and offered her a hand back up. She laughed nervously, brushing a strand of hair that had fallen from her elegant hairstyle back.

"Do you have a name?" She asked, trying her best to appear informal by imitating what he had asked her. Her naturally upper class accent made sure she failed in this task, but she had at least tried.

"Yes." Olose answered, managing a smile before carrying on through the woods. Aracdia struggled behind, trying to keep up, slipping and sliding on the muddly slopes.

"Urm, so what is it?" She called, falling behind, slightly irritated by the man's complete disregard for what she had meant before.

"Olose." Came the answer. Olose was uneasy about saying his surname. After all, it wasn't his _real _surname. His real surname had died back in that cave when he was four.

"I am pleased I met you." She said, snapping back into her usual overly formal self. Olose sighed, before managing a chuckle as he heard her yelp, slipping and falling down. He turned around and lifted her up again by her bare shoulders, surprised by the soft feeling of her skin.

"You're lucky you did." Olose smiled.

"Yeah, I would have been stuck for a long time." She admitted, blushing slightly. Luckily her blush was hidden beneath her thick make-up, meaning Olose failed to notice.

"No, I meant before the beastmen came." He told her. She looked at him with a worried glance.

"Beastmen?" She asked.

"Yeah, they would have come and killed you pretty quickly. You really shouldn't be travelling alone." Olose told her.

"I was not planning on getting stuck." She explained, sarcasm penetrating her voice.

"They would of killed you were you stuck or not. You're just lucky most are still reeling after last night's storm." Olose gave in reply, sounding weary, but almost enjoying the power he had over her.

"I could have avoided the beastmen." She told him, sounding quite confident. "They would not have seen me." Olose laughed aloud at this.

"They would have found you instantly." He told her.

"How?" She asked. "I would have stayed out of sight."

"Sight isn't the only sense the beastmen rely on." Olose told her. "How do you think I found you?" She looked blank. "You wear so much perfume every single beastman in this entire area must know exactly where you are, they track by smell and have a far stronger sense of smell than humes do." She paused awkwardly, sniffing the air and her own scent.

"There is nothing wrong with smelling nice." She said shyly.

"There is if you're planning to survive out here." Olose answered bluntly. "But then again, you're really not the 'surviving out here' type." He laughed. Arcadia shook a little. She was quite clearly scared. She hurried close to Olose, sticking by him.

"Will you protect me?" She asked in a panic. "If anything comes?"

"I'll handle it." Olose smiled. She smiled back.

"Thank you." She whispered softly.

"Now, come on." He smiled. "It's still quite a long way to San d'Oria. We could take a short cut across the fields but the rain will have reduced it to a marsh." Olose didn't mention it was also the site of his old village, the village that he had destroyed. He couldn't bring himself to go back there.

"Could we not make it through?" Arcadia asked. "It would save time." Olose sighed. He couldn't go back there. He knew he couldn't.

"It's far too muddy. I don't want to be pulling you out every two seconds." He told her with a wry smile, crushing the sadness that gripped him deep down inside his soul, replacing it with forced humour. Arcadia laughed with embarrassment.

"I guess you are right." She said. "Well, lead on then." Olose smiled, gesturing for her to follow him. She hurried after him, trying to keep as close as she could.


	3. Travelling

**CHAPTER 3**

**TRAVELLING**

Olose paused as he watched Arcadia slide down the bank. She stumbled a little and let out an audible sigh of relief.

"Flat ground." She observed. "At last. And no more trees."

"Yeah, that's what happens when you leave the woods." Olose observed with a sigh.

"So is it much further?" Arcadia asked, trying to keep her voice even and well paced, but Olose could here an underlying tone of her whining.

"I'm not entirely sure." Olose admitted with a shrug. "I know my way around those woods, but the rest of the world? Kinda lost there." Arcadia straightened out her dress.

"You do not know?" She asked, sounding slightly frightened and slightly nervous.

"I have a fair idea." Olose told her. "It's that way." He pointed. "I think." Arcadia sighed with frustration. "Look. The elvaans are all over the place, showing their might as it were, we'll run into them."

"Do they enter the woods often?" Arcadia inquired curiously.  
"Yeah, but they rarely leave." Olose said painfully. Arcadia rose an eyebrow.

"What is that supposed to mean?" She asked.

"They hunt. Send squads during the full moon. There's a legend about these woods." Olose told her, and she straightened up. "They say there's a monster in it. One that prowls upon the nights of the full moon. The elvaans never liked the idea of there being something that they couldn't kill, so they kept sending squads to get rid of it. They don't always survive." Arcadia gulped, looking over her shoulder back at the woods.  
"Is there a monster?" Arcadia asked nervously.

"Not exactly a monster." Olose answered with a shrug.

"You have seen it?" Arcadia questioned.

"Not quite." Olose explained. "C'mon, let's get moving." He began to walk and Arcadia followed behind.

"Is that why it's called Lycan Woods?" Arcadia asked. Olose froze. "It is Lycan Woods, isn't it? I am not more lost than I thought, am I?"

"No, it is." Olose confirmed.

"So Lycan, as in lycanthrope." She said blankly. "A werewolf." She added to confirm what she meant for Olose's sake. Olose smirked at this.

"Maybe." He answered. "I don't really know." The two paused. "What does it matter?" He finally said. "We're leaving the woods behind."

"I guess you are right." Arcadia answered. Her seeming inability to contract any word was beginning to get on Olose's nerves.

The two walked across the field leaving the woods behind. They soon found a path, one that was muddy and churned from the storm, but a path that led in a firm direction. The two began to slosh through it, Arcadia struggling behind Olose.

"This has to lead to somewhere." Olose observed.

"I was under that impression when I followed the path into the woods." Arcadia pointed out. "I appeared to be wrong."

"It did lead somewhere, you just never made it." Olose laughed slightly. Arcadia folded her arms, frustrated but utterly without the ability to say anything in return. Olose chuckled to himself.

"You are awfully light hearted for somebody who lives alone in the woods." She observed.

"Being moody never helped anybody." Olose answered. "Besides, I think four years of isolation might of made me go crazy."

"You appear to be sane." Arcadia pointed out. Olose smiled.

"I had a pet tree." Olose told her. "I was going to have a pet goblin, but it kept stabbing me." Arcadia cringed and Olose laughed. "Relax, I'm joking."

"I am unsure of how they will react to you in town." Arcadia said to Olose, sounding slightly concerned. "You are not going to improve the elvaan's opinion of humes." Olose turned to look at her. His long beard blew in the slight wind, and his roughly made and extremely dirty animal skin fluttered as if to emphasise itself. "Relax. I am joking." She added with a smirk. Olose laughed. "But you may need to find some real clothes."

"Clothes aren't exactly easily available in the wilderness." Olose pointed out.

"We may have found someone." Arcadia interrupted Olose just before he could speak again, and pointed ahead at three approaching figures. All three were humes, and all three were dressed in rough clothes, well worn shirts and ripped trousers. The leader of the three had a battered brown jacket hanging from around him.

"This could be trouble." Olose warned.

"It is possible they are just travellers." Arcadia stated. Olose tried to get an idea of them from their scent, but was overwhelmed by Arcadia's own, finding his thoughts full of images of her, and he struggled to shake off such thoughts and come back to his senses. He was more than slightly worried about the pounding attraction he felt for her. The three stopped in front of the two.

"Well, well, well." Laughed the leader. "Now this is something that looks out of place."

"Where would they possibly look in place?" A second asked. The leader laughed.

"Preciously."

"Hello." Olose waved with a smile.

"Money. Now." The leader stated, drawing a knife. The other two drew knives also. Arcadia tensed up, but Olose laughed.

"No. Now go away." He said casually.

"Money. Now." Repeated the leader with a growl, becoming much more serious.

"Do I look like I have money?" Olose laughed with a shrug.

"She does." The second said, gesturing to Arcadia.

"That dress doesn't look like it has any pockets." Olose pointed out. "You hiding money anywhere, Arcadia?" He asked casually. Arcadia shook her head stiffly, in too much fear to point out that Olose should address her as 'Lady Arcadia'.

"We'll just take the jewels then." The second spoke up, marching forwards. Olose threw a punch as he passed, smashing into his skull. The bandit reeled to the ground, slamming against the floor. He didn't get up. The other two looked at Olose, shocked.

"Oh, you did not just do that." Warned the first.

"Do what? Killed him?" Olose laughed.

"You hit him once. He ain't dead." The third sneered nervously. Olose smiled.

"No. Broke his jaw though." Olose told the other bandits. Arcadia looked shocked.

"You don't scare me." The first laughed. "Kill him." The third bandit ran at Olose with his knife. Olose growled, lunging forwards on all fours and pouncing like an animal. He took down the bandit and slammed his hand down in a bottom fist onto his opponent's nose, shattering it. Olose sprang back up, snarling. His hands were out like claws, and his body was hunched, ready to pounce. The lead bandit laughed, reaching behind his back and drawing a sword.

"Let's see how you handle this." He taunted.

"Fantastic." Smiled Olose.

The bandit ran in, swinging the sword across. Olose dropped to the floor and allowed it to sail over his head. He sprang back to his feet and kicked outwards, hitting the bandit in the chest. The bandit flew across the path and crashed down, skiing across the path. Olose ran at him, but before he could attack, the bandit sprang upwards, stabbing Olose in the chest. Arcadia screamed as Olose jolted back. The bandit laughed.

"Shame you made it end in murder." He observed. Olose paused, watching blood trickle from his chest.

"Don't be so quick to judge." Olose casually warned, pulling the sword out and slicing downwards with it, cutting the bandit's leg badly and causing him to crash to the floor, screaming. Olose spun the blade around and attacked with the hilt, bashing the bandit and knocking him unconscious. Olose turned with a smile to Arcadia. "Well, that's dealt with." He said, brushing his hands off.

Arcadia stared at Olose for a moment, her already pale skin becoming noticeably paler. She trembled slightly.

"What?" He asked with a shrug. "None of them are dead." He paused. "You're not squeamish are you?" She nodded. Olose smirked slightly, looking at the huge amount of blood that had flooded out of his now healed wound. He rolled over the bandit he had just defeated, slipped off the jacket he was wearing and put it on, doing it up to cover the blood. "Better?" She shook her head. "Now what?" He sighed.

"Why are you not dead?" She asked. "Y-Y-You're the werewolf, aren't you?" She said, backing away in terror.

"Relax." Olose said quickly. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"You killed all those patrols." She mumbled in shock.

"I didn't mean to!" Olose snapped. "I have no control! Not on a full moon!" His eyes began to fill with tears. He remembered Talia. What he had done to her. Arcadia suddenly felt incredibly sorry for him. "I never meant to harm anyone." He sobbed. "That's why I've been hiding. That's why I've hidden in those woods." Arcadia took a few steps towards him, and wrapped her arms around him for comfort. He was taller than she was, and it was only now that she noticed just how muscular he was. She assumed it was a side-effect of the curse, his muscles almost appearing as if they were going to burst out from under his skin.

Olose was caught off guard by this. She was hugging him, trying to comfort him. Her fragrance drifted up his nose, and he found himself totally preoccupied with thoughts of her, overpowered by her scent.

"How did it happen?" She asked in a much softer voice. Olose broke away, just so that he was able to think clearly.

"I was-" Olose paused. The memories flooded back to him. He couldn't retell that story. He simply couldn't. It was something he had to keep hidden. He didn't know how she'd react if he told her anyway, so decided to keep it simple. "I was bitten by a werewolf." Olose finally lied. "A few years ago." He paused. "I can't go near civilisation anymore. At least, not during a cycle of the moon." Arcadia took a step closer, and held him once again. She was smaller in stature than Olose, and so struggled to provide much comfort.

"It is alright." She said gently. "I understand."

"I can't go to San d'Oria with you." Olose told her, breaking out of her arms and striding away.

"Why not?" She called after him. He turned around.  
"What?" He snapped.

"Why not?" She asked again. "It is safe, at least until the full moon." Olose paused.

"I don't want to risk it." Olose sighed. "A single mistake and I could kill everybody." He looked into her eyes. "I could kill you." Arcadia took a few steps away.

"You have been helping me a lot." She pointed out. "I'm willing to take that risk."

"Well I'm not!" Olose snapped.

"Please. Olose." Arcadia stepped forwards gently, placing a thin hand on his shoulder. "I need you. You have saved me. Without you I would still be back in the woods. I would never have found my way." Olose sighed.

"I'll show you to San." He decided. "But I can't stay long."

"I understand." She told him. "Although I do hope you will change your mind."

"It isn't a case of me changing my mind." Olose explained. "It's a case of me becoming a murderous unstoppable monster."

"Unstoppable?" She asked.

"Unless the local guards stock silver." He shrugged. "Burns like hell."

"Somebody used silver weapons on you before?" She asked, stroking his shoulder with concern before pulling her hand back awkwardly.

"Once." Olose told her. "I never saw it coming. It hurt more than I could imagine." Arcadia shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

"It hurt you?" She asked, clearly very concerned.

"Burnt like a fire." Olose said with his eyes shut at the memory. "Seems no curse is complete without a weakness." The two paused awkwardly. Arcadia took a few steps away and straightened herself.

"We should be moving on." She said, becoming her usual formal self once more.

"Aw, and for a moment there I thought you'd snapped out of that posh act." Olose laughed.

"Posh act?" She repeated curiously.

"Hell, thought you might even end up contracting your words." He joked.  
"What do you mean by that?" She asked. Olose laughed.

"Nothing." He said quickly. "C'mon." Olose had discovered that ending anything serious on a joke was an easy way to repress the feelings it brought about long ago, and so always tried to end any conversation he could with a sense of humour.

The two walked on for quite some time before they heard footsteps approaching them from behind.

"I don't even think I want to guess what's going on here." Came a deep voice. Olose looked to see a group of six elvaans, headed by a man in the standard red and gold San d'Orian military uniform. He had short brown hair, dark blue eyes and long pointed ears. He looked curiously over Olose and Arcadia. Arcadia was a little caught off guard by the elvaans coming up behind them, but Olose was in total shock. He was used to being able to sense when anybody was approaching long before they did, but found that his senses were totally overwhelmed by Arcadia's presence. He couldn't concentrate on anything but her. He shook his head furiously, desperately trying to focus.

It wasn't just that she was there. He wasn't just preoccupied with her. It was that _scent_. The smell of her that hung in the air and that he couldn't shake. It made sure his thoughts composed solely of her. It was easy to ignore a presence, or concentrate on something else when you were listening, or seeing, but the smell he couldn't shake. It was in the air he breathed, and his super sensitive senses picked it up without fail. And it made sure that all he could think of was her. It frustrated him a great deal, but he kept it hidden. After all, it wasn't her fault that his senses were as highly tuned as they were.

"I am Lady Arcadia De Lily." Arcadia said with a formal curtsey, and Olose managed to snap back to reality as he heard her voice. "I am attempting to reach San d'Oria, only I am not certain of the way."

"Hi, I'm Olose." Olose waved after he noticed the elvaan was scowling at him.

"You two are certainly an odd pair." The leader observed. "How do I know you aren't spies sent from Windurst?"  
"I'm guessing the fact we aren't tarutarus has something to do with that." Olose pointed out. "That, and if we were spies, I think we'd be dressed differently."

"Just who are you two, exactly, anyway?" The leader asked.

"I'm a bit of an exile." Olose decided to give in explanation. "Ran into Arcadia here and decided to give her a helping hand."

"That's _Lady _Arcadia." Arcadia pointed out, hearing her name without the title being completely foreign to her.

"My name is Lieutenant Norg." The elvaan said with a bow, taking Arcadia's hand and kissing it gently. "Pleased to meet you my lady. You look as if you've been through some trouble."  
"The storm made the terrain difficult to traverse." Arcadia gave in explanation for her muddy and worn appearance.  
"Luckily I was around to help." Olose interjected, feeling a little uneasy about the armed guards who didn't seem to appreciate his presence anywhere near as much as they appreciated Arcadia's.

"I can show you to San d'Oria, my lady." Norg volunteered. Arcadia curtseyed again.

"I am most appreciative." She said in response.  
"Yeah, thanks." Olose put in.

"Are you coming also?" She asked Olose. Olose smiled.

"Of course." He said, suddenly feeling uncomfortable of leaving Arcadia with the guards. It was almost as if it was jealousy. Arcadia smiled.  
"I am glad of that." She said softly.

"I'll show these two back." Norg said to his guards. "You continue the patrol. I'm sure our superior will understand that I had to come to the assistance of this fair lady." Arcadia blushed again, and once again nobody could tell.

"Yessir!" Snapped the elvaan patrol.

"Now, follow me." Norg told Arcadia and Olose. "You'll be within San d'Orian walls by nightfall." Arcadia and Norg walked ahead, and Olose watched, losing himself in Arcadia's presence once more.


	4. Arrival

**Author's Note: Just a little thing about this chapter. If you've read the FFXI Chronicles, you know I don't like to swear, so use fake swear words throughout the story. This time I tried something different (for the character of Norg at least). He does swear, but just not in English. Taking an idea from TV show Firefly, whenever he swears it's in Chinese. The excuse is that Chinese is the 'ancient tongue' here, but I didn't want to make up a language and had a good list of Chinese curses from Firefly (as well as some non-curse phrases). I don't actually speak the language, but hopefully it's accurate enough. He does actually say stuff in those quotes, sometimes it's quite bad, and sometimes it's not. I'm basically using it as an excuse not to swear, because I think it sounds out of place in the light hearted fantasy stories I write. That and I love Firefly and think it works really well in that.**

**Oh, and the fact that Norg is the name of a place in FFXI I am perfectly aware of, believe me, it's not coincidence a character is named it too.**

**CHAPTER 4**

**ARRIVAL**

"You hear that?" Olose suddenly snapped to Norg. The tall elvaan stopped dead in his tracks and listened, his sensitive elvaan ears picking up the sounds of approaching creatures.

"Beastmen." He stated. "Ta ma duh!" He added, yelling in a foreign language Olose didn't recognise. "What the hell are our patrols playing at?" He snapped. "We're the strongest kingdom ever created, yet we still allow those hwoon dahn beastmen near our city! I'm going to have serious words with our commanders when I get back."

"That is the ancient tongue." Arcadia observed. "You know how to speak it?"

"Yeah, learnt it back when I was young." Norg said casually, before pausing. "Oh gos se, you understood, didn't you?" Arcadia nodded. "I apologise. I didn't mean to be so offensive. That's why I swear in a language nobody knows."

"Why? What did he say?" Olose asked, feeling left out.

"He said you look like a girl." Arcadia teased. Norg laughed.

"I'm sure he did." Olose grumbled. "Now what about the beastmen?"

"Sounds like they're coming to get us." Norg observed.

"Let's see how well the elvaans train their warriors, then." Olose smiled.

"I count four, incoming." Norg pointed to four charging orcs, running between the trees towards the three travellers on the old path.

"Arcadia, stay here." Olose ordered. Arcadia nodded sheepishly, having frozen with fear at the charging creatures. Olose held out his hands and growled in an animalistic way. "This is where the fun begins!"

"Hand to hand?" Norg smirked. "No match for elvaan martial arts." Norg leapt into a fighting stance, holding one fist up to guard his head and one to guard his lower body, dancing on his feet to keep nimble. The orcs closed in and the two warriors attacked.

The first orc lunged with its spear at Olose. Olose swung to the side, clawing the spear away in a large swing. The orc brought it back around and Olose ducked under it, coming up and grabbing the arm of the orc. He spun around behind the beast, twisting the arm and breaking it. The orc howled in pain as he spun it around and strangled the creature with its own arm.

Norg faced another that swung in with a short sword. He sprang backwards down onto the floor, and let out a powerful kick upwards, hitting the hand of the orc and sending the blade flying. In an instant he was back on his feet and sent two precise strikes with his hand, snapping into the neck and the nose of the orc, shattering it. The orc staggered back and he delivered a powerful kick to its chest, knocking it to the floor. He leapt down on top of it and twisted its head, snapping its neck.

Olose spotted an orc running towards the girl left on the path.

"ARCADIA!" He screamed, bolting after it on all fours like a wolf. He leapt through the air, tacking the orc and the two tumbled to the ground. The mighty beast lifted him up and threw him back before charging him. Olose charged the orc and the two clashed, hitting each other and pushing against each other. The orc was much larger, but Olose's lycanthrope strength began to shine through as he pushed the beast back, letting out a roar as he did. The orc stumbled back and Olose snapped his hands together, like claws, his sharpened fingernails slamming into the orc's face and ripping through it. He pulled back, tearing its face to pieces. The orc screamed, dropping down to its knees. He let out a powerful kick, hitting the orc's head and crumpling it. It did not get back up.

The last orc and run in attacking Norg. It stabbed with its spear and Norg leapt backwards, managing a backflip to land safely away. The orc charged him but he had already picked up the spear of the orc he had defeated previously. He dove into a front roll, levelling the spear along the ground and tripping up the orc. It crashed to the floor as he turned around and impaled it on the spear. It screamed in agony before stopping, dead.

Olose and Norg span to face each other.

"Some pretty impressive moves there." Olose grinned.

"I'm a monk." Norg looked more serious. "I'm an expert hand to hand fighter. But just what the hell are you?"

"I grew up in the wild, learnt to fight all on my own." Olose explained. Arcadia watched, repulsed by the blood she was seeing and feeling quite ill.

"Don't lie to me, Olose." Norg warned. "You met the strength of an orc. You don't look like a galka, so care to explain that one?"

"Maybe he was just a pushover orc?" Olose suggested.

"Chur ni-duh." Norg grumbled to himself.

"I wish you'd stop doing that." Olose muttered.

"Doing what?" Norg asked casually as they walked over to join Arcadia.  
"Saying things in a language I don't understand." Olose explained.

"Well, I used to get in trouble for being too vulgar, so it's better when people can't understand what I'm saying." Norg laughed. "Beside, you never know when being able to speak in the ancient tongue may come in useful."

"It's ancient." Olose pointed out. "That means nobody speaks it anymore. How could it possibly be useful?"

"Maybe we should make sure Lady Arcadia is okay instead of arguing." Norg suggested. Olose sighed.

"I guess you're right." He agreed. "You okay?" He asked to Arcadia, who was stood looking pale and frightened.

"I-I-I-" She tried to say. "No." She finally said instead. Olose let her fall into his arms, and turned her away from the orcish bodies. "I am not cut out for this." She said softly.

"It's okay. We're nearly to San d'Oria now." Olose told her.

"I should never have attempted this alone." She stated, trying to get a hold of herself.

"You aren't alone anymore." Olose said gently. "Remember that." She smiled slightly.

"Sorry." She stated. "Blood makes me feel rather ill." She straightened herself out yet again, as if trying to fit back into the way she felt she should be behaving.

"Understandable." Norg nodded. "You aren't used to it. It's a perfectly normal reaction." She smiled warmly at Norg.

"Thanks." She managed to say.

"Perhaps we should just get to San d'Oria." Olose stated. "It's getting dark, and judging by the shifts in temperature we have another storm coming."

"Another storm?" Arcadia repeated nervously.

"San d'Oria is close." Norg stated. "Which is why I'd like to know how beastmen got so near to the city." The elvaan added in a grumble.

The city soon loomed into view, a tremendous work of stone on the horizon. The proud walls stood high, fresh and powerful looking. The city had only rapidly expanded recently, and the mighty outer walls were a new construction to repel any invaders as San d'Oria spread outwards in its influence. Windurst had recently become withdrawn from the world, feeling guilt for introducing the techniques of magic to the world and as a result San d'Oria had been able to expand outwards into the most powerful nation in the land. The city had expanded greatly as a result, and now stood proudly before the three weary travellers. Two elvaan guards snapped to attention.

"Lieutenant." Nodded one guard. "Got yourself a pet?" Olose smirked at them.

"Watch it. I bite." He warned.

"These two are alright." Norg stated. "This here is Lady Arcadia De Lily. High up hume. Respectable. Likeable. Has friends here." Norg knew he would have to justify allowing humes into the elvaan city, so set about doing so. He turned to Olose. "Urm, this guy is-" He paused. "You know what, just let 'em in."

"It's at times like this I wish I knew how to speak ancient." Olose grumbled.

The three wondered into the streets of San d'Oria and stood for a moment, taking in the calm and peaceful streets. Norg grumbled something in ancient to himself.

"The storm must of knocked down our banner." He sighed to Arcadia, pointing to a place where two strings hung. "That should be the symbol of our nation."

"It is very strange here." Arcadia commented, looking up and down the streets. "No stalls. No people. No auctions."

"Ha. None of that happens here in San d'Oria. We're elvaan. We're above the petty acts of humes." He laughed. "We stick to more respectable trading than shouting and yelling in the streets." Arcadia tried to ignore the insult. It was a matter of fact to Norg.

"I am supposed to be meeting Lord Tarrak." She stated. "My family are good friends of his."

"Lord Tarrak?" Norg asked. "I can show you to his manor." He paused. "Olose. Take this gold and swing by a clothiers. You can't wonder around the city dressed like that." He stopped to examine him. "I don't know what's worse, the animal skin or the brown jacket." Olose smirked.

"I like the jacket." He said in response.

"It does not look good." Arcadia stated, smiling slightly.

"See? She agrees with me." Norg taunted.

"Yeah, I guess it doesn't suit me." Olose admitted. There was a pause. "I guess this is goodbye then." Arcadia smiled much more warmly.

"Thank you. For everything, Olose." She said kindly. "I would never have made it without you."

"Nor I without you." Olose smiled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Norg asked with a laugh.

"I have no idea." Olose admitted. "Just thought it sounded poetic." Arcadia let out a small laugh. "Makes more sense than your ancient crap anyway."

"Ancient gos se." Norg corrected. "Gos se means crap."

"I'll remember that." Olose smiled. "Well, goodbye. Thanks." He turned and walked away, forcing himself to snap without looking back. Arcadia watched him go sadly. She had hoped he would have stayed, or at least arranged to meet again.

"Goodbye Olose." She whispered. She let out a heavy sigh. "I hope Lord Tarrak has a change of clothes for me in his manor." She groaned to try and change the subject. "I'm muddy and worn down, and I'm supposed to be the daughter of a lord."

"Appearances don't always make the person." Norg smiled. Arcadia watched Olose wondering down the street.  
"They really don't, do they?" She whispered.

Arcadia was sat alone some time later in the large room Lord Tarrak had provided for her. She was sufficiently cleaned up, now dressed in a tight red dress and wearing new red shoes, having redone her hair and make-up and looking fresh and new, having even enjoyed a bath on behalf of the elvaan. Despite the hospitality she was offered, she somehow felt empty. She missed Olose. He was so strange, but there was something so likeable about him. She held in her hand a small bottle of perfume, and she sprayed it lightly onto her neck. She was already wearing plenty, but she couldn't put it down. It reminded her of everything Olose had said, all of his comments about it. She couldn't stop thinking about him.

"I figured you'd still wear that stuff." Came a voice from the doorway. Arcadia jumped and spun around. Someone was leant against the doorframe, trying to look casual. He had fairly long black hair, but cut just above his shoulders, cleanly shaven and wearing a neat brown shirt and tan trousers. A scruffy brown jacket rested on his shoulders. Deep brown eyes looked at Arcadia.  
"Olose." She whispered in surprise.

"Made you easy to find, at least." He told her. She smiled warmly. "Can track that scent from across town."

"You look different." She stated, feeling a bit uncomfortable with him talking about her smell so changing the subject.

"I got a hair cut." He smiled.

"You kept the jacket though." She observed.

"Yeah, it kinda grew on me. Couldn't find a better one, at least." He told her, walking into the room.

"What are you doing here?" She questioned. Olose paused.

"I don't know." He admitted with a shrug. "It just didn't seem right leaving you on your own." He paused awkwardly. "Besides, I figure you have to head back to Tavnazia soon. Not gonna trust these elvaan to escort you, are ya?" She laughed.

"Some of them are very nice." She told Olose.

"As nice as me?" He smirked. She stood up.

"Is there any way I can answer that question without implying something?" She laughed. There was a pause. "I really appreciate it. I think I may need the escort home. I was really useless."

"Don't worry." Olose said warmly.

"I have actually been thinking about that." Arcadia said, slipping into a more official tone. "If I am to continue travelling, I will need a body guard, or an escort. You seem to have no job. Would you like the place?" Olose smiled.

"I would require three days off each month." He pointed out, trying to mimic her upper class accent. She laughed.

"Of course." She smiled.  
"Then I'd love too." Olose grinned, finally feeling a purpose in his life and an excuse to leave the woods and his past life behind.

_Lycan Woods read the title of the book Norg had opened._

_Lycan Woods, once home to the last surviving werewolves of the world. The elvaan armies sent out warriors to wipe them out by order of the King during San d'Oria's initial expansion. Using silver weaponry, the last of the werewolves were wiped out and their evil curse was finally destroyed. It was a major victory for the elvaans, and gained massive support for the nation from all sides._

_Recent reports suggest that a werewolf, or maybe more than one, survived and still prowl the woods. A village there was totally destroyed. It is therefore the sworn duty of any warrior of San d'Oria to eliminate this surviving werewolf if he is ever located, or as many as have survived to complete the work of the warriors from so long ago._

Norg slammed the book shut and looked up in shock.

"Lao-tyen, boo." He whispered. The book was one of many that covered the history of certain areas for the armies of San d'Oria. He knew what he had to do. He reached for his equipment and left the barracks, heading for the home of Lord Tarrak.

Olose was sat in the large drawing room with both Arcadia and Tarrak. Tarrak smiled.

"So, I hear you performed some great heroics." Tarrak said to Olose. Olose laughed.

"A few." He admitted.

"Not bad for a hume." Tarrak grinned. "Of course, nothing compared to an elvaan."

"Of course." Olose smiled sarcastically. "Although, of course, I did help take down beastmen that were worryingly close to the city."

"Ever since I retired, my boy." Laughed Tarrak. "You see, my son hasn't finished his training yet, and I am no longer able to fight. Without a Loneheart in the army, the entire nation is falling to bits."

"Loneheart?" Olose questioned.

"My family line." Laughed Tarrak. "I am Lord Tarrak Loneheart." Olose nodded as he understood. "So, what do you plan to do while staying in San d'Oria?"

"Haven't really thought about it." Olose admitted.

"There is the elvaan ball tomorrow night." Arcadia put in. "I am expected to attend, but have no one to go with." Olose turned to her, looking confused.

"I think that was an invitation." Laughed Tarrak. Olose looked shocked.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Olose asked. "I'm just a scruffy unimportant hume after all."

"I am certain it is a good idea." Arcadia told him. Olose's face became a smile.

"I'm not. But count me in anyway." Olose decided. "Sounds like a good chance to annoy a few elvaans anyway." Tarrak laughed at his joke, the two had been exchanging jabs at each other for most of the evening. There suddenly came an urgent knocking. Olose rose to go to the door. "Let my servant get that." Tarrak said with a wave of his hand. The door burst open before anybody could react and Norg bolted in, spotting Arcadia but missing Olose.

"Arcadia!" He cried. "I have some urgent news!".


	5. Combat

**Author's Note: I forgot what I always do at the start of this story. The disclaimer! I don't own FFXI! There, done. I completely forgot about that.**

**Anyway, another point for this chapter, some things may seem to not add up with the FFXI world (especially the way everybody talks about adventurers at one point). I just wanted to point out this is still 594 years before Final Fantasy XI, so the way they talk about them here and things is designed to be setting up different attitudes that change over the centuries. I actually plan that you see them change as the story progresses, but I wouldn't be convinced I can pull that off, so that idea may die. It doesn't involve characters insulting each other, which means I struggle to write it. (I'm really a one trick pony when it comes to writing, which you'll probably come to notice/have noticed if you've read my old stories). Anyway, on with the chapter!**

**CHAPTER 5**

**COMBAT**

"What is it?" Olose asked quickly. Norg spun in shock, facing Olose.

"You." He gave in blunt answer, drawing a sword. "He's a monster! A werewolf! That's why he's so strong!" He announced.

"What?" Olose cried.

"No! Norg, you do not understand!" Arcadia cried.  
"I understand perfectly." The silver long sword shone in the light. "I understand this will kill him, and end his curse once and for all."

"I don't want to hurt you Norg." Olose said calmly. "I'm not evil. I'm cursed, but it doesn't mean I'd harm anybody."

"Fei hua Olose!" Spat Norg. "I bet that's what you always say."

"It's the truth!" Olose protested.

"All those elvaan patrols killed in the woods. That truth too?" He snarled.

"I didn't mean to! They came after me!" Olose cried.

"Well then, consider this for everyone's safety, Olose." Norg smiled, holding out his blade. "Silver will burn through you like fire." He lunged with the sword.

Olose dove aside, grabbing a chair and swinging it. Norg jumped back and swung with his sword. Olose blocked it with the chair and leapt at Norg, tackling him. The silver blade crashed to the floor as the two fell. Norg kicked Olose off of him, and the hume flew backwards, slamming against the ground. Olose spun to his feet, crouched, as Norg moved in. Olose unleashed himself, pouncing through the air with a roar. He hit Norg and the two crashed out of the window of the manor and into the street outside.

Lightning struck as they landed and rain began to pelt down. Round two of the storm that had ravished the woodlands earlier. Norg and Olose rose to their feet, facing each other.

"You don't need to do this." Olose warned.

"I'm only doing what I have too." Norg answered. "I have to make sure San d'Oria remains safe. I have to finish what our knights started."

"Your knights?" Olose gasped. "You-" He paused. "You elvaan bastards wiped out my people!" He sprang at Norg, knocking him from his feet and striking him to his face. "It's your fault dammit!" He screamed. "It's all your fault!" Norg spun on the ground, flipping his legs around Olose's neck and throwing him off with them. He rolled over and struck Olose to the throat and nose, shattering it. The bone regenerated as Olose threw Norg off with all of his might. "They were peaceful!" He sobbed. "They weren't harming anyone! And they knew how to control it!" He roared as he charged, hitting Norg with great force. "If they were alive I would be able to control it! She'd still be alive!" He threw another punch, but Norg blocked it, swinging behind Olose and sweeping his legs away. Olose crashed to the floor.

"Who?" He snapped. "Who are you talking about?" Olose growled and sprang from the floor, tacking the elvaan.

"You elvaan bastards!" He screamed, hitting Norg again. Norg hit Olose, causing him to fall back. Norg sprang to his feet, taking a fighting stance.

"They did what they thought they had to do!" Norg protested. "They didn't realise!"  
"You do!" Olose spat. "And you continue to fight!"

"I follow the rules!" Norg yelled.

"Then don't!" Olose shouted. They paused. "Don't! So what if some rule tells you to exterminate every last one of us. Look at me. I am the last. And I'm a person first, a werewolf second." He stood there, panting, as rational thoughts re-entered both of their minds. The rain thundered down on them as both Arcadia and Tarrak watched in concern from the shattered window.  
"The werewolves murdered and killed many people." Norg stated. "They had to be wiped out."

"And the elvaans didn't murder and kill many?" Olose asked.

"That's different!" Norg cried.

"Is it?" Olose snapped. "The elvaans wiped out an entire race! That's genocide! Or it will be if you kill me."

"You compare the werewolves to the elvaans, then fine." Norg growled. "Then you're no better than us for fighting me for what my brethren did. I didn't kill your people, Olose." There was another awkward pause. "That was the warriors of the armies from two decades ago." Olose paused.

"I never meant to kill anybody." Olose stated sadly. "I-" He suddenly froze. "Do you hear that?" Norg's sensitive elvaan ears listened.

"That's a horn sounding retreat!" He gasped. "Coming from outside the city! Someone's in trouble!" The two looked at each other and bolted for the exit to the city without a second thought.

A young elvaan woman ran, bleeding heavily, and carrying her unconscious companion. Bloodied brown hair flowed behind her, and her armour was cracked and broken, an arrow lodged in her shoulder. She stumbled, barely able to keep moving, her injured shoulder unable to cope with the dead weight of her friend. Half a dozen orcs still chased her, roaring and howling. She gulped with determination, she had to make the gates for her friends sake. Her squad had been ambushed on patrol, and all but the two now fleeing were dead. Her friend was barely still alive, having taken multiple arrow hits and having had his own hand cut off. She had been injured, but managed to stay conscious and knew to retreat. She thought she saw something approaching. It looked odd. Like somebody running on all fours at incredible speeds. Her eyes went wide as something bolted past her.

Olose leapt into the air, kicking the leading orc in the head with a roundhouse. The orc crashed to the floor, its neck broken. Before Olose landed, he kicked the second orc in the jaw. He landed in between them. He quickly kicked the second orc again to the rib cage, and once more to the neck in a rapid pump of side thrust kicks, taking it out. Two more orcs charged, stabbing him with their spears. The elvaan woman spun, looking in shock. Olose grinned, grabbing the two spears and spinning them around, his wounds instantly healing. He lunged, stabbing the two orcs with their own weapons, taking them out. Another beast hit him across the head, knocking him to the ground. He looked up in a daze as the attacking orc kicked him over and hit him to the face. He roared, leaping upwards and knocking the orc off of its feet. The two tumbled, but the orc managed to throw Olose off of it. It rose, and a figure snapped its neck from behind. Norg smiled and Olose looked around with a sigh. The orc that Olose had failed to take care of had been finished off by Norg easily enough. The two stared at each other for a moment before rushing to the aid of the two elvaan.

"He's been hit badly." The woman told them. "I couldn't stop them. They ambushed us!"

"Shee-niou orc cowards!" Spat Norg.

"I'll get him back to town." Olose decided. "I'm faster than any of you."

"I'll help the girl get back." Norg told Olose. "I'll meet you at the barracks."

"Alright." Olose nodded. "See you back at the city." He lifted the wounded man and shot off through the forest. Norg helped his new companion to her feet.  
"Are you alright?" He asked.

"I'm not a girl. I'm a woman. And a respected member of this army!" She commented.

"What?" Norg said in confusion.

"You said you'd help 'the girl'. I'm Private Nadia, I have a rank and a name." She told him. Norg smiled slightly.

"Don't you think we have more concerns right now. You're hurt." Norg pointed out.  
"And you're no white mage." Nadia said angrily. "Now help me back to town."

"Charming." Sighed Norg.

Olose was slumped outside the barracks some time later. The rain thundered down on him, but he decided it was better than waiting inside with the elvaans. He pondered everything that he had argued with Norg about earlier. The fact that the elvaans had wiped out the werewolves, but in turn, he had hated the elvaans for it as much as they hated the werewolves for the few they had murdered. He wondered what Norg would do next. He didn't really want to think about it.

"Tzao-gao!" He heard Norg exclaim as the elvaan marched out of the barracks. Olose jumped slightly, completely unaware that he had ever been in there. He felt fairly stupid for having waited outside.

"What's wrong?" Olose asked in confusion as thunder roared overhead.

"That girl I escorted back." He grumbled. "I've never met anybody so irritating."

"Well, least you're through with her now." Olose sighed.

"Not quite." He grumbled. "That's the problem. She's been assigned to my squad now her own is gone. At least once she's out of the infirmary." Olose chuckled to himself and Norg scowled. They paused for a moment.

"Listen, about earlier-" Olose began.

"Forget it." Norg interrupted. "I should never have done anything. You're a good man, no matter what curse you carry."

"I should leave this city." Olose sighed. "It's for the best."

"Not that simple." Norg told him. "You arrived with Arcadia, and are now registered to go to this dance with her." Norg explained. "I checked by. If you disappear, it'll be suspicious. And if the higher ups catch on to who you are, they will hunt you down."

"Aw gos se." Olose said sarcastically. Norg smirked slightly.

"So my plan involves you getting out of here after the party, leaving with Arcadia as her official bodyguard." He paused. "I know you're supposed to be taking that position anyway." Olose looked at him, confused as to how he knew. "I stopped by and talked with her. Had to apologise for smashing the window." He gave in explanation, Olose not even having to ask.

"So I stay here for the time being?" Olose confirmed. Norg nodded. "Sounds exciting."

"It could be." Norg told him. "We may have a problem."

"The orc attacks? Two in two days. They're up to something." Olose figured.  
"For a wild man you're brain works pretty quickly." Norg laughed. Olose grinned.

"But what does attacking a few elvaan patrols mean?" Olose asked, trying to make himself more serious once again.

"I don't know." Norg sighed. "When San d'Oria expanded, we kicked a lot of the beastmen from their homes. They could be retaliating. These petty attacks are a pathetic form of vengeance."

"Or it could be something bigger." Olose warned.

"The beastmen couldn't function in groups bigger than six. They can't organise a dammed thing." Norg laughed. Olose nodded uneasily.

Back in the home of Lord Tarrak Arcadia walked gently over, bending down and wrapping her soft hands around the hilt of the dropped sword. She struggled with its weight, lifting the blade, but not being able to keep the point risen. Tarrak laughed, walking over and taking it from her before she dropped the weapon. She blushed slightly with embarrassment.

"I don't think somebody like you should ever handle a weapon." Tarrak said warmly. Arcadia sighed, looking around the room and at the shattered window. The wind blew in harshly.

"I apologise sincerely for this." She said politely. "I will pay you for the repairs."  
"Don't worry." Tarrak laughed. "That was the best entertainment I've seen in years. Never seen somebody fight like that Olose boy."

"Have you not?" Arcadia inquired curiously.

"No." Tarrak answered. "He fought like an animal, not a hume. He hasn't been trained, at least not by any normal warrior."

"He grew up alone in the woods." Arcadia explained, walking out into the hallway outside. "He could not have been trained for many years." Tarrak smiled as he understood. Arcadia grabbed hold of a smooth golden pole, and lifted it up. White cloth hung around the end of the pole. An umbrella.  
"Where are you going?" Tarrak asked, suddenly concerned.

"To find Olose." She answered. "I need to find where they ran off too."

Arcadia walked lightly through the city, the white umbrella open wide above her head, repelling the rain. She gripped the pole of the umbrella tightly, her hands shivering from the cold. She decided to hurry, the bottom of her dress still getting lashed by the rain and her legs becoming soaked. She shivered and decided to find some cover.

She walked under a large canopy, shivering and deciding she had made a bad decision going in search of Olose. The huge elvaan city loomed around her and she suddenly felt very lost. She gulped awkwardly and decided she should head back. She knew she wouldn't find Olose.

A loud shattering noise proved her wrong. She screamed, backing away. A large clear window to a bar she was next to had just exploded, and Olose's body flew through it and crashed into the street. He got up, looking dazed.

"Arcadia." He said in surprise, flicking pieces of glass out of his face. She sighed, calming down.

"What is it with you and windows?" She asked.

"Well I-" Somebody jumped out of the window and tackled Olose. He crashed down and hit him off. Olsoe staggered to his feet.

"Bloody adventurers!" Spat the attacker, who clambered to his feet. "Bloody hume adventurers!" A whole group of elvaans stumbled out of the bar. Arcadia watched in shock. Norg climbed out the window to watch.  
"You really know the best places to get a drink, ya know?" Olose cried to Norg sarcastically.

"We don't like adventurers around here." One of the elvaans snarled.

"I kinda figured." Olose sighed.

"Adventurers have no place. Leeches." He continued to rant. "You leach off people, steal the jobs real people are supposed to do."

"I'm not an adventurer!" Olose protested. "Norg! Tell them!"

"What? Why me?" Norg laughed. "This is fun." The elvaans began to advance on Olose and he backed away a few steps.

"I'd like to point out that I'm slightly outnumbered." He said to Arcadia, managing a smile. She looked on in disbelief. "So, you understand, I'm normally perfectly heroic."

"What does that mean?" She asked in confusion as he backed away.

"Urm, well it's just that I'm gonna-" He paused as the elvaans moved in to attack him. "RUN!" He screamed, and bolted away as fast as possible.

Norg walked over to Arcadia as she looked on, stunned. She tried to speak, but failed.

"Orcs attacked a patrol." He explained, deciding to save her the trouble of asking. "We stopped them and rescued the survivors, and decided to grab a drink. It turns out that some elvaans mistook him for an adventurer." There was a pause.

"Oh." Arcadia answered. She knew perfectly well that adventurers were frowned upon as freelancing leeches that stole the jobs of people who had respected trades. They very rarely were even allowed into the city, and were greatly frowned upon. "I was actually wondering about why you two were no longer trying to kill each other." She explained, walking towards Norg and stepping carefully to avoid the shards of glass.

"Oh, that." Laughed Norg, as if he had forgotten it. "We decided to work out our differences by speech."

"He is a nice person." Arcadia said, her voice having an almost dreamy quality to it. "He does not deserve to be treated badly." Norg smirked.

"I know." He answered. "That's why I didn't kill him." Arcadia chuckled to herself before instantly straightening herself back up. "What's so funny?" Norg asked, sounding offended.

"Nothing." She said, covering her mouth up to hide her smile. "I am sure you could have killed him."

"I could have!" Norg protested. Arcadia laughed, before shivering. "You look cold." He said after a pause. "We had better get you home."

"Thank you." She said softly, lifting up her umbrella as they stepped out into the rain. "I hope Olose is alright."

Arcadia was sat some time later clutching a cup of elvaan tea, keeping herself warm. Tarrak had got his servants to border up the smashed window, but it was still cold within, especially considering that Arcadia had gotten wet outside. She had already changed clothes into a light blue nightdress, and let her long black hair down, but had insisted on staying awake until Olose came back. Norg had left for the barracks, but Tarrak had stayed with her. The door suddenly slammed open and she sprang to her feet. Olose stood there, looking tired.

"Elvaans don't like me." He commented. "One stabbed me!" He pointed to the hole in his shirt, stained slightly with blood even though the wound was healed.

"You get a white mage?" Tarrak asked in confusion at his mysteriously healed wound.

"Urm, yeah." Olose answered.

"I am reconsidering you being my bodyguard." Arcadia told him. Olose suddenly looked incredibly worried. "I think I should be yours." She added, finishing the joke. She chuckled and Olose sighed with relief.

Deep within the dark caverns of a mighty bandit layer, the legendary bandit king Abaj Tuh sat in a large golden throne.  
"Sir?" Came the voice of an elvaan. "I believe you may be interested in this."

"What is it?" Abaj, a bald and slightly overweight hume, asked. His dull grey eyes looked out from his fatty face.

"I was in a brawl at a bar in San d'Oria." The elvaan told Abaj. "I saw someone you may be interested in."


	6. Friendship

**CHAPTER 6**

**FRIENDSHIP**

Olose swung open a door to the small servant's room Tarrak had allowed him to stay in. He had slipped into his clothes and wondered out groggily. He wasn't used to washing, or doing anything to groom himself, having lived for four years alone in the woods, and so simply wondered down the huge stairs to the study below. He swung open the door to get a look at the city. The streets were still worn and damaged by the storm of the previous two nights, and the entire place looked as if it had been washed clean. He bent down to a puddle and used the water to splash over his face, still feeling groggy and attempting to wake himself up. He looked around the fairly empty city. He smiled and decided to take a walk, knowing that Arcadia would take hours before she was fully awake and dressed to her satisfaction.

He walked up onto the wall overlooking the forest outside of the mighty city with a smile, enjoying the moist seeming air and cool breeze. He loved the feeling of aftermath after bad weather, it was always cool and relaxing.

"_And I took them all out by myself!_" Came a voice. Olose smirked, turning around.

"I'm sure you did." Grumbled back an annoyed voice. "Why did I get you as my partner for patrol?"

"Because I'm in your squad?" Came a stark answer. Olose looked around to see Norg and Nadia climbing up the wall. He waved and Norg hurried to him.

"How'd you like to be enlisted in the elvaan army?" He asked quickly. "You can take my place. Now." Nadia laughed behind.

"I'm not that bad!" She chuckled.

"Isn't she a private?" Olose inquired. "You know, a lower rank than you?"

"How'd you know that?" Norg asked.

"I have rank insignia." Nadia said in a deadpan voice.

"He does have a point." Norg threatened.

"Then court martial me." Nadia said casually. "Maybe Windurst needs some good adventurers."

"You're friend pulled through, by the way." Olose put in.

"I know." Nadia answered, rolling her eyes. "I did check in on him!"

"This the morning patrol, then?" Olose guessed.

"Wow, check out the brain on that guy." Nadia laughed to Norg. Norg sighed.

"Yeah, we are." Norg told Olose. "The guys who were supposed to do it were murdered by orcs last night." An awkward silence fell. Nobody felt comfortable joking and laughing about the dead. Olose looked out across the trees.

"So much for your mighty nation." He sighed.

"We'll handle the orcs." Nadia snarled. "We'll wipe 'em out before they know what hit 'em."

"Tyen-sah duh uh-muo." Grumbled Norg. Both Olose and Nadia looked at him blankly. "Goddamn monsters." He translated through gritted teeth. "We can't wipe them out. They're too savage and there are too many of them."

"Have the attacks always been this common?" Olose asked curiously.

"Oh no, mostly they've been running scared from us." Norg answered. Olose peered out over the forest.

"They're planning something." Olose stated. Norg laughed.

"I told you, they can't plan. They're disorganised beasts." Norg told him. Olose sighed a smile.

"I guess you're right." He said turning away. "But if San d'Oria gets attacked, you owe me a drink." Norg smiled.

"Deal." He turned to Nadia. "Now we had better get on with our patrol."

"I'm sure you can flirt with your boyfriend if you like." Nadia taunted.

"Don't make me angry." Olose warned sarcastically. "You won't like me when I'm angry." Norg smiled knowingly, and Olose grinned.

"I don't like you anyway." Nadia shot back.

"Ow, I'm hurt." Olose said, clutching his heart in an overdramatic action. Nadia mumbled something and turned away. Norg laughed.

"See ya later." He smiled, walking away.

"Yeah, see ya." Olose decided to jump off the wall, landing in the street below. The fall shattered his ankles, but they instantly regenerated again anyway.

Norg and Nadia wondered the streets before arriving at the bar, the window still shattered from the night before.

"That your doing?" Nadia guessed. Norg laughed.

"Not quite. It was Olose." He answered. "Mistook him for an adventurer."

"Ah." Nadia nodded with understanding. "Do you think he was right, 'bout the orcs attacking?" Norg laughed aloud.

"Not you to?" He smirked. "Those orcs couldn't manage to organise an attack on a scared rabbit, let alone San d'Oria. Besides, these walls are solid."

"And on their land." Nadia reminded him smugly.

"Wuh duh ma huh ta duh fung-kwong duh wai-shung doh!" Norg exclaimed in a mouthful. "Orcs are not going to attack this city!" He was clearly getting wound up.

"You keep that attitude up and they'll just give up. Nobody has a clue what you're saying. They'll just give up listening to gibberish and go home. The orcs'll never attack!" Nadia mocked. Norg rolled his eyes.

"Nah mei guan-shee." Norg said, beaming with pleasure at knowing how frustrated Nadia was at her inability to understand him. She grumbled something as Norg signalled for her to move on.

Arcadia walked down the now much busier street, deciding to look for Olose. The ball was in the evening and she wanted to make sure that she could find him successfully. She had a bad feeling Olose would have no idea how to present himself. She wondered the stone streets, looking down at the wet floor and feeling glad her dress ended at her ankles to avoid it dragging and becoming soaked. She had searched, but she hadn't seem him anywhere. She had even investigated the dingy bar he had been in the night before, never having quite felt as out of place in her life. She decided that he must have headed outside, probably becoming involved in a brutal fight or two. She hated it when he did that. She knew that he was immortal, but was still petrified he would get hurt. Illogical, but true. She headed to the main gate heading out into the forest and looked out over the drenched area. She couldn't see Olose, but knew if he was out there, he could be easily be hidden behind the many trees. She stepped out of the gate to follow. She cringed as her feet sunk in the muddy ground and found herself wishing she could remember enough ancient so that she could curse the storm without people understanding what she was saying. She sighed with relief as she eased her feet out, and stood back on the stone ramp leading out of San d'Oria. She decided Olose could take care of himself.

She rose an eyebrow as she heard something pounding towards her. Could that be him? She listened, and suddenly saw an orc approaching, storming towards the city. Her eyes went wide and she tried to run up the ramp. Her muddy feet slipped on the stone and she fell forwards. She turned on the ground in horror as the orc got closer. An arrow hit between its eyes and it dropped down on the ground just before it reached the ramp. Arcadia turned away, sighing in relief but covering up her mouth in a reflex at seeing blood.

"They aren't attacking the city, huh?" A voice mocked.

"Can it, Nadia." Norg said casually as Nadia put her bow back on her shoulder. Norg bent down and helped Arcadia to her feet.

"Does this mean you owe Olose a drink now?" Nadia smirked.

"No way, I said 'orcs', plural. Only one attacked." Norg replied. "Are you okay?" He asked Arcadia. She straightened out her dress and hair.

"Yes, I believe so." Came a formal response and a nod. "Where is Olose?"

"Not a clue, he's been jumping around all over the place." Norg answered. "Paranoid about orcs attacking."

"I wonder why." Arcadia said dryly, looking at the corpse.

"You're just lucky I'm good with a bow." Nadia smiled.

"Of course. I thank you." She said politely.

"It's what I get paid for." Nadia casually replied. Norg had wondered over to the body of the fallen orc, and was looking over it carefully.

"This is the closest they've been to the city since San d'Oria expanded." He observed. Arcadia wondered over to his side, looking distastefully down at the muddy ground.

"What do you think it was doing this close?" Arcadia asked gently.

"I don't know." Norg admitted.

"Probably saw me somewhere and couldn't resist my winning personality." Nadia joked. Arcadia and Norg shot her a look and she sighed. "Well, I'm sure it's just here to kill us all, that's what they normally plan. It's dead now, what does it matter?"

"Don't you ever think in the long term?" Norg shot.

"Not if I can help it." Nadia casually entered. Arcadia turned away from the body, looking a great deal paler than she had a few moments before.

"Nice shot, by the way." Norg commented, holding the arrow he had pulled from the orc's face. He threw it to Nadia and she caught it.

"Why do I want this?" She asked in confusion.

"Rule one of survival." Norg answered casually. "You can use and reuse everything."

"I thought rule one was 'think smart before you think hard'?" Nadia asked. "At least that's what you told me the first time."

"Rule one of telling rules." Norg stated with a grin. "Every rule is rule one."

"I really hate you." Sighed Nadia.

"I need to find Olose." Stated Arcadia. "I had better start looking."

"You checked the bar?" Norg asked.

"I have." Replied Nadia.

"Well, I'm out of ideas." Norg laughed.

"You would be." Nadia shot.

"He might be in trouble." Arcadia said awkwardly.

"Why?" Nadia questioned.

"I need to see him, and he knows it." Arcadia explained.

"Maybe he just can't find you." Nadia pointed out. Arcadia laughed, blushing slightly.

"Urm, he can track me by my scent easily." She admitted. "He has done it before. He can find me easily if he wanted too."

"Olose isn't the type to get into trouble." Norg said in his most comforting tone.

Olose was in serious trouble. Or he would have been if he was mortal. The elvaan skilfully swung in his sword, slicing him across the chest. Olose staggered back, unarmed and unable to get close to the elvaan due to his incredibly fast sword skills. The elvaan lunged, stabbing Olose for a third time.

"Ow!" Olose cried. "Dammit!" He was steadying approaching a large canyon just outside of the forest leading to San d'Oria. He had been exploring. The plains around the area were littered with canyons, and right now he was about to fall down one.

"I know you were at that bar last night." The elvaan spat. "And I know you would have seen who I was looking for."

"Depends on who that is." Olose gulped, getting close to the edge. The elvaan attacked again. Olose jumped over the blade, soaring over it and tackling the elvaan. The blade clattered to the ground. The elvaan hit Olose to the face, and Olose lifted his opponent with all his might and threw him off. He flew out of view. Olose sprang up, taking a fighting stance "Now who are you working for?" He snapped. "Who are you looking for?" He paused. "Urm, where've you gone?" He asked, noticing his opponent was nowhere to be seen. He walked over to his fallen sword and picked it up cautiously. He peered down the canyon, and saw the crumpled form of the elvaan at the bottom. "Oh." He sighed. "I think I threw him too far." He paused. "Wait. Who am I talking to then?"

Olose wondered back to the city, his mind racing. He had been ambushed while scouting the area, and nearly lost the fight. His regeneration and kept him alive, but the assassin was totally out of his league, slicing him apart with his amazing speed. Olose had survived because he was nigh impossible to kill, but would have been put through a lot of pain if he hadn't gotten lucky. That and he knew all it took was a lucky blow slicing off his head and he was gone. To top it off, all chances of finding out why he had been attacked, or who that assassin had wanted rested at the bottom of the canyon. Somebody at the bar? Could it be they were hunting him? He pondered this silently for a moment before sniffing the air. He caught Arcadia's scent easily and decided to track her down.

Norg and Nadia had disappeared to the bar, having finished their duty for the day, and Arcadia and returned to Tarrak's home to change, since she had once again ended up with dirt and mud over her clothes. The ball was soon, and she had to be presentable for it. Of course, so did Olose, but she knew he would show up soon. He had to. She had forced her own worries away. She was still extremely uneasy about the thought that Olose could track her anywhere by her scent, it made her shiver awkwardly. There was something creepy about it, but at the same time, it was particularly pleasant to know that he always knew where she was and could always protect her. She suddenly found her thoughts wondering and she attempted to get them back in line. She was supposed to be a lady of high society. _Those _feelings were wrong. Not for some wild man. A competent bodyguard and friendly he might be, but she shouldn't feel like that. Should she?

Olose walked casually through the city, his mind at a loss. He spotted Norg and ran over to him.

"Norg!" He cried. The elvaan turned around, looking angry. "What's up? Having fun with your new partner?" He mocked. "How is she?"

"Tah-shr suo-yo dee-yure duh biao-tze duh mah!" He spat in response.

"Something tells me I don't want to know what you just said." Olose said tactfully. "Listen, I have something important to talk to you about."

"It has to wait." Norg instructed him. "You have a ball to get to with Arcadia."

"Crap! I totally forgot! Crap! Sh-" Olose paused, trying to think of a good curse. "Quick! Give me a phrase that I can mutter that sums up this situation!"

"Da-shiong bao-jah-shr duh la doo-tze?" Norg suggested.

"Da-shong-" Olose stopped, realising he couldn't repeat it accurately. "What does it actually mean?"

"The explosive diarrhoea of an elephant." Norg answered casually.

"What? How does that sum up my situation?" Olose cried.

"It doesn't, but I thought you yelling that out would be funny." Grinned Norg. Olose rolled his eyes and left, bolting towards the location of Arcadia's scent.

He sprang in the door of Tarrak's manor.

"I remembered!" He announced. Arcadia walked over to him, looking more beautiful than ever, dressed in a long flowing black gown. Olose looked slightly shocked at her overwhelming beauty. She quickly turned away, covering her mouth with hands covered by long silk gloves. "What?" He asked after her.

"Blood." She managed to say. Olose looked down, realising his shirt was torn and bloody by the assassin.

"Oh, that." He said casually. "I'll explain that later. I figure we're late for some sort of shindig."

"It is a ball." Arcadia instructed, turning around. "It is very formal. You had better go and see Lord Tarrak. He will be able to instruct you in what to wear."

"Fun." Grinned Olose sarcastically. "But after this I need to talk with Norg. Something bad happened."  
"What?" Arcadia asked with concern.

"It doesn't matter." Olose tried to dismiss it. "Besides, I'd hate for us to be late." He bolted up the stairs of the manor looking for Tarrak.

"But you do not even know when it starts!" Arcadia called after him, but he was already gone. She got the distinct impression he didn't like talking about any moments of weakness he may have suffered.

**Author's Note: Just out of interest, the Chinese isn't too annoying is it? I find it funny because I know what it is. Maybe at some point I'll post the translations, not all are too pleasant though. Some are alright. None are beyond usual sweariffic (can I copy right that word?) dialogue anyway. I just hope it isn't annoying people, or person at the moment, since TheFrogKiller seems to be my only reader. Which I'm grateful for. Thanks TheFrogKiller (that's a damn clunky name to type on here, I'm going to have to start calling you by your real name!)!**


	7. Revelations

**CHAPTER 7**

**REVELATIONS**

Olose was an experienced fighter. He had fought a lot of beasts during his time in the woods, and fought plenty since he had left. Yet he had never fought a battle as difficult as attempting to tie a bowtie. He simply couldn't figure it out. He had managed to get it into a knot, which he then struggled extremely to undo. He eventually decided to leave it knotted, having been completely defeated, but Arcadia wouldn't let him. She took over and helped him dress himself, something which Olose had a feeling he'd never live down.

He was uncomfortably dressed in a tuxedo, stood by the buffet table as he watched multiple elvaans dancing in a way that he actually found quite intimidating. Mainly because he had no idea how to imitate it, and yet he knew Arcadia would want him too. Slow moving classical style music filled the large hall, an ornate and expensive looking chandelier hung from the ceiling and gigantic fancy looking paintings hung from the walls. Olose shuffled slightly, feeling very much out of place. Arcadia was greeting many of the elvaans that she recognised, and Olose was left alone, a hume in a hall full of high status elvaans. He got a few dirty looks, but nobody really talked to him. He looked at the food laid out on the table, but decided that since he couldn't identify any of it he shouldn't eat any of it.

Arcadia, having satisfyingly conformed to the social regulations and greeted everybody she recognised, finally returned to Olose.

"You look petrified." Arcadia couldn't quite hide her smile.  
"You're not expecting me to do that, are you?" Olose said blankly, looking out at the many dancers.

"You fight monsters but cannot dance?" She asked, smirking in a way that seemed uncharacteristic of her.

"I didn't have much need to dance living alone in the woods." Olose told her casually. "Except one time, but that's a long story." Arcadia shot him a strange look and he smiled. She couldn't quite tell whether he was joking or not.

"So what was that dance?" She asked, deciding to play along.

"It's really not appropriate for here." Olose laughed nervously. Arcadia rose an eyebrow.

"Well, what are we going to do?" She questioned him. "I invited you to a dance. You have to dance or the point in you being here is void, is it not?"

"I could teach you to speak like a normal person." Olose suggested. Arcadia folded her thin arms.

"Excuse me? I think it is you who needs educating in how to speak correctly." She shot, the upper class accent in her voice seeming more evident than ever, almost as if she was intentionally exaggerating it.

"Least I speak the right language." Olose grumbled, wondering exactly what Norg was up to at that point in time.

Norg was slightly drunk, slumped at the bar of a dingy tavern. The window was still smashed in the background. Nadia was laughing beside him.

"Giving up, Lieutenant?" She taunted, holding up her empty shot glass.

"Tsai boo shr, Private." He shot back, lifting his own shot and downing it. Nadia smirked, downing her next one with ease. "They teach you guys drinking contests in basic now?" Norg slurred, downing one, determined not to give up.

"Taught this myself before I was arrested." She told him, looking as if she was struggling to stay conscious.

"Arrested?" Norg asked in confusion.

"Yeah, they stuck me in the army as a better use of my energies. A kind of community service, I guess." She shrugged, weakly reaching for the next shot.

"Tah mah duh hwoon dahn!" Norg exclaimed. "Pride of the elvaan nation we are." He added in a sigh.

"Hey, I'm a good solider. Nice and respectful to my superior officers." She joked.

"Yeah, try that, but opposite." Norg told her. The two slumped on the table as thunder crashed. Norg bolted up and Nadia jumped. Norg burst into hysterical laughter at Nadia, who folded her arms, looking annoyed. They looked out of the shattered window as rain began to thunder down outside and lightning flashed.

"Another storm." Nadia muttered.

"Tyen shiao-duh, not another storm." Norg sighed. "Three nights, three storms. Almost as if it's…" Norg trailed off.

"What? What is it?" Nadia asked, getting up drunkenly. Norg bolted out of the tavern. Nadia looked on in confusion, but quickly followed.

Arcadia lifted Olose's hand and placed it on her shoulder, and took his other hand, and positioned it on her arm. His rough hands were uncomfortable against her silky skin, but she willing to put up with it.

"Now you just step gently to the music." She advised. "It is simple." She began to dance in a circle, and Olose followed uncomfortably.

"That's all there is to it?" He asked. She smiled.

"Not exactly, but I think it is as far as you will get." She mocked gently. Olose smiled back, and Arcadia sighed lovingly, luckily able to hide her feelings behind her extremely formal posture and expressions. Olose heard the thunder outside of the window, but didn't react. Arcadia looked around curiously, not reacting too badly as she was safe within Olose's arms.

"These storms are getting to be ridiculous." Olose sighed. "I'm glad I'm not back out in the woods."

"As am I." Arcadia told him. "It is strange that they are occurring so frequently."

"Like clockwork." Olose observed. "I don't think they're natural." Arcadia smiled, slightly amused.

"You really are paranoid, are you not?" She told him. "What could possibly be causing storms that is unnatural?"

Norg looked out over the wall into the forest outside, rain pouring down on him. Nadia ran to his side.

"Tah mah duh hwoon dahn!" He exclaimed as he saw what he was waiting for bolting between the different bushes and trees.

"What? What is it?" Nadia yelled over the wind and rain.

"They've been using the goddamn storms!" He exclaimed. "The orcs! They've been positioning themselves in the goddamn storms!"

"What?" Nadia called. Norg turned in shock.

"They're moving when we can't see them or track them. They're preparing for an assault." He explained. "They're going to attack!"

Olose felt embarrassed, not only because he felt like he was a fool, but because everybody else in the room was outperforming him as far as dancing was concerned. He slowed to a stop subconsciously.

"What is it?" Arcadia asked, her voice sounding concerned.

"Nothing." He tried to dismiss his thoughts. "I was just thinking about earlier."

"What happened?" Arcadia questioned softly.

"I was attacked. Somebody was trying to find somebody who was at the bar the night of the brawl." Arcadia looked on at Olose, seeming quite scared.

"Do you think they know what you really are?" She asked. "That they were looking for you?"

"I don't know." Olose shrugged. "But it can't be good." Olose froze as he heard something on the horizon. "What was that?" He snapped.

"That sounded like an elvaan war horn." One of the dancers observed. Olose's eyes went wide.

"Norg _so _owes me a drink." He announced as he bolted out of the building.

Norg looked out as elvaans ran to his side, drawing their weapons. He had rushed down and out of the gates while Nadia sounded the war horn, warning of the incoming attack. Orcs charged the walls, spears prepared.

"Impossible." He gasped as they got closer. "They couldn't organise themselves like this." They got closer, and Norg readied his weapon. He was much better hand to hand, but knew he had to fight armed first. The entire city was caught completely unprepared, and the few gate guards gripped their own swords nervously beside Norg. He could see up on the walls archers were beginning to fall into position, but it was too late. The orcs got too close and engaged Norg and his comrades in combat. He was completely outnumbered.

He counted about fifty orcs. Nowhere near enough to wipe out the city, but far more than should be able to operate in a group. He began to spin his sword, taking one out and blocked another. A third stabbed at him, knocking his sword away. It clattered to the ground and he sprang into hand to hand, dodging the stabbing spears and knocking the orcs aside with precise strikes. He saw too late one behind him going for the stab. He jumped to avoid it as an incredible force slammed into the orc, taking it out. Olose drove his fist through the orc's face, and leapt off it.

"What the hell is going on?" Olose cried over the rain.

"We're under attack!" Norg shouted back. "The goddamn orcs used the storms!" He cried. "They manoeuvred into position under cover of the storms to launch a surprise attack!" Norg beat back another orc, ducking under its swinging spear and blasting it in the knee caps with a powerful kick, dropping it down.

"There aren't enough here to cause any real damage." Olose observed. "What's going on? This isn't right."

"Somebody or something is controlling them!" Norg explained. "Some powerful mage. Powerful enough to summon these storms!" Olose leapt over an incoming blade, landing on an orc's shoulders and bouncing over it. It swung around, cutting him across the chest. The wound healed instantly and he swung outwards in a large claw like action, tearing across the orc's chest. He ripped the orc's spear out of its hands and impaled it with it.

"Where could he be?" Olose cried over the sounds of battle. The elvaans were beginning to become more organised, sending arrows at the orcish hoards that, despite having reached the walls, couldn't penetrate the mighty gates.

"A good vantage point." Norg guessed. "The mountain just west of here. Must be there." He guessed.

"I'm gone." Olose stated, tearing across the forest heading for the mighty mountain.

Arcadia looked out of the window from the ballroom with concern. She couldn't see much through the heavy rain.

"Mi'lady." Came a voice. She turned around to see a man dressed fully in black stood before her. She jumped slightly, startled. "Do not be too concerned for your friend." He said gently. She smiled slightly, relieved by his words. "It is for your own safety you should be concerned." His face suddenly twisted into a horrific grin and Arcadia's eyes went wide.

Olose raced up the Ghelsba mountain as fast as he could, finding old disused winding paths that he took to get ever nearer to the top. He skidded near the top only to be hit by a bolt of lightning and blasted across the mountain. He stopped just before plummeting to the ground below and looked up to see a small tarutaru dressed in full mage's gear staring him down.

"Who the hell are you?" Olose cried.

"Ah, Olose Sampson, I presume?" Laughed the mage.

"What do you want? Why did you attack San d'Oria? To lure me up here? Is that it?" He cried. The mage chuckled.

"Oh no. Notaru at all." He smiled. "You are not even part of our plan."

"But I know you mentioned me! The man at the tavern! That was me! I'm who you're hunting!" Olose cried.

"We never said _man_." The tarutaru mage grinned. "Don't be so sexist." Olose's eyes widened.

"Arcadia!" He gasped.

"Indeed, she arrived in San d'Oria sooner than we thought." The tarutaru confessed. "Your interference no doubt." He grinned again. "You see, my storms served a double purpose. One, they slowed down Arcadia, and two, they allowed us to move the orcs into position for the distraction."

"Distraction?" Olose asked curiously.

"Oh yes. Her kidnapping you see." The tarutaru explained. "We've been planning it for quite some time, but while she was safely in Tavnazia grabbing her was difficultaru. As soon as we learnt of her trip to San d'Oria we put our plans into action. It was lucky one of our agents was in the bar that night, or else we would have been totally unaware she ever arrived. Of course, our orcs were not as prepared as we would have liked, but I did what I had to do."

"Why? Who are you working for?" Olose growled.

"Abaj Tuh." Answered the tarutaru bluntly.  
"Abaj Tuh?" Exclaimed Olose. He had heard the name before. A very powerful crime lord, so rich and powerful he was immune to all prosecution and remained holed up in a fortress somewhere in the world. He had pretty much taken over the criminal world seventeen years ago.

"Yes." The tarutaru grinned at the recognition. "Tavnazia decided to cross him, to try and drive his criminal partners out of the city. In retaliation he wants to capture their favourite daughter, Lady Arcadia. She is ours already. You cannot stop him."  
"I'll kill you, stop these storms and track her down." Olose growled. "With you dead, whatever spell you have over the orcs will be disrupted and they'll fall into chaos. And you can't kill me." The tarutaru burst into hysterical laughter. He drew a silver sword from his belt.

"I think that I can." Grinned the mage. Olose backed away in fear. "So, let's talk about this. Fighting me will just result in your death."

Norg cheered as he cut down another orc. Nadia ran to his side, stumbling away from one of the beasts that was attacking her. She blocked each blow desperately, but looked wounded, her arm badly cut. Norg pushed her to the floor and skilfully took down the orc, striking upwards and snapping its neck with his bare hands. He turned to Nadia.

"You owe me one." He grinned. Nadia got up, clutching her arm. He looked at her in shock. Was she crying? She turned away, not letting Norg get a closer look. "Nadia? Are you alright?" He asked with concern. She turned around.

"NORG!" She screamed. "Look out!" Norg turned around and just managed to dive aside in time as flames tore past him.

"Great." He sighed. "They have a flamethrower." The gigantic wooden construction lumbered across the battle, sending flames out and burning trees and troops alike. "We need to take it out!"

"Let's beat it at its own game!" Nadia cried, regaining her usual fierce attitude. "My arm is dead. I can't fire any arrows."

"What are you suggesting?" Norg asked.

"Fire!" She cried. "Keep up would you? Fire! We'll burn the bastards! It's made of wood!"

"With what?" Norg protested. The flamethrower turned to face them, and fired out more flames.

"The trees are burning!" Nadia pointed out.

"Keep me covered." Norg ordered. "Jun ta ma yao ming. Joo-ee." Nadia gave him a blank look. "Be careful." He summed up.

Olose clenched his fists.

"You won't keep her." He warned. "I'll save her."

"You'll die here." The tarutaru taunted.

"Then why haven't you killed me yet?" Olose shot.

"I like torture. When the foolish adventurer realises whataru has actually been happening." The mage laughed. "Arcadia's a cute girl, but foolishly stupid. She got herself so stuck we didn't need this plan to kidnap her, just some mud would have captured her for us."

"Wait. How do you know about that?" Olose asked curiously, yet bitterly.

"Nice of you to help her out though." The tarutaru continued. "Oh, what, surprised I knew?" He laughed again.

"Impossible. You couldn't have seen us. I'd of smelt you." Olose said in confusion.

"Arcadia is dangerously naïve, she never saw me, and you rely so much on scent a simple deodorize spell meant I was all but invisible to you." The tarutaru grinned. "I know what you are, everything you've been up to. I've been watching you. The whole time." He laughed.

"That's a load of rubbish and you know it!" Spat Olose. "You didn't know Arcadia was in San d'Oria. You can't have been following us."

"That foolish elvaan friend of yours had his troops sent out. They spotted me and I was forced to retreat, mistaken for an agent of Windurst." The mage explained. "So I sent in the elvaan spy who was at that barroom brawl. He had no problem spotting you with the riot you made." The tarutaru laughed again. "So my plan is now complete. Manipulate a few storms through my great power, cast a spell of control over the orcs, and it all falls into place. Arcadia is mine, and her protector is about to die." He began to advance with the silver blade. Olose gulped.

"Not here." Olose stared at the little villain. "I can't die here. Mark my words, I will save Arcadia. That means you can't kill me."  
"We're about to find out!" Cried the tarutaru as he lunged in for an attack.

Norg leapt up and grabbed hold of the branch of the flaming tree. As predicted it burnt and broke under his weight. He grabbed the flaming branch and ran at the flamethrower. Nadia leapt aside, dodging the flames, keeping it distracted. She stumbled, falling forwards and landing on her arm. She screamed in pain as she felt her injury throb. Norg ran in towards the mighty flamethrower and hurled his flaming branch at it. It bounced off the wet wooden structure, not causing any damage.

"Hm." He grunted. The orcish flamethrower turned to face him, leaving Nadia in safety. He scooped down and picked up the flaming branch, running around to the side of the structure before it could flame him. He spotted the entrance to it and ripped it open, spotting the orcs operating it within. He threw in the flaming branch and shut it again. He heard screaming from inside as the orcs were lit in fire. He helped Nadia up. "Run!" He cried, and the two retreated as the flamethrower exploded, the flames getting to whatever explosive substance was inside. Norg cheered; the orc's were beginning to retreat.

Olose flipped over the tarutaru, landing behind it, and ran the length of the mountain as his attacker swung in with the silver sword. Olose dodged it, but was caught off guard by a lightning strike. He tore across the mountain top, and landed roughly. The little tarutaru ran in, blade ready, preparing to attack the downed werewolf. Olose roared, leaping at him. The silver blade skimmed by his side, burning him and cutting into his flesh. Olose screamed, hitting the tarutaru hard. The tarutaru staggered back as Olose grabbed his side, the pain throbbing through his body. A seemingly small wound from a silver weapon was nearly enough to disable him. The flesh around the injury seemed to melt. The tarutaru stumbled back, his face bleeding.

"Impressive, boy." He spat. "But you cannot win. METEOR!" A gigantic portal opened above the mountain, and Olose saw a huge boulder emerge; a meteor. It tore down towards him at incredible speeds. He ran backwards, jumping from the mountain and sliding down its rocky surface to a ledge below as the meteor hit, blowing apart the top of the mountain. Olose looked up just in time to see a fireball emerging from the dust cloud, hitting him and blowing him off the mountain. He fell down, tumbling down the slope in an avalanche.

Arcadia struggled uselessly, being pulled away by her captor through the crazed city as citizens ran in panic.

"Let me go!" She grunted, completely unable to move.  
"No." Came the firm response. Her captor was an elvaan, dressed in a black ninja outfit. "You belong to Master Tuh now."

"As in Abaj Tuh?" She asked in horror. Her captor grinned as she recognised the name. "Oh no." She muttered. She redoubled her efforts, grunting and struggling desperately to get free, but her captor was far far stronger than she was, and held her captive easily.

"Stop struggling." Commanded the elvaan. "I don't want to mess up your pretty face, but I will." Arcadia looked up at him in hopelessness. There was nothing she could do. Only one person could save her now.

Olose looked up wearingly. The tarutaru peered down on him with a grin.

"Goodbye, Mr Sampson." He laughed, holding the silver blade over him. "You were no match for me." He drove the blade down, and at the last moment, Olose's hands snapped together, stopping the blade. His hands hissed with smoke as it burnt into his flesh. He screamed in agony as he flipped the blade around into a stab, impaling the tarutaru. He released the blade as the tarutaru fell limp, dead. He looked at his burnt hands, feeling sick and giddy with pain. He turned away from the tiny body.

"Arcadia." He managed to say, trying to fight back the agony he was in. He clenched his hands and ran.

Norg spotted Olose approaching.

"The storm has faded, Olose!" Norg cried. "You did it?" He looked over Olose, who was in a dirty and torn apart tuxedo still. His side was clearly injured, and his hands looked almost as if they had melted. "What happened?" Norg asked in concern.

"Arcadia has been kidnapped." He explained. "And I'm going to get her back."

**Author's Note: I saved this 'til after the story this time, because I wanted to point some stuff out about this chapter.**

**Most notably it sucks. I have a theory why, but it's quite a major problem. And that problem is Olose. He makes a worse main character than I had been planning. At least for me too write. People who have read the FFXI Chronicles will know that I used Vivli for pretty much the emotions and point of view, and it worked. I seem to find a little naïve girl much easier to write from than a hardened wild man. Is that a commentary on me? But it seems I struggle to write Olose's character and keep things interesting. Hopefully it'll pick up.**

**Another thing is that you may notice that San d'Oria is dropped in it. Again, if you read the FFXI Chronicles, you'll know that this happens often. It's a coincidence, honestly. Here, it had to be San d'Oria, because Jeuno isn't constructed yet, neither is Bastok (I think), Windurst is in isolation and Arcadia had to travel to another major city, leaving San. Sorry if you're an elvaan fan, I don't mean to keep screwing over San d'Oria. Although I still haven't forgiven then for that time they called me a fur-ball…**

**Another one of my main concerns is making sure everybody followed the story, I got a bit lost with everything going on, and the attack on the city came about a bit quickly. Sorry to use the stereotypical 'beastmen attack' plotline, but it was a convenient plot device. Anyway, hopefully everybody followed it okay, and wasn't as confused as I got myself in trying to get all the different plot elements to work.**

**And for once somebody nearly swore. I did have Olose exclaiming 'bullshit!' at one point, but decided since I never write that normally, I should leave it out because it was out of place.**

**Oh, and TheFrogKiller, yes I do know your real name! At least I think I do. I know what hotmail thinks it is, because when I receive an e-mail from you, it tells me the name you registered your e-mail address to in the inbox list. Whether it's your real name or not I don't know and I won't post it here in case you don't want me too.**

**And remember, shout at me if the Chinese is getting annoying. I'm gonna have to translate all the phrases I used at some point. Some in this chapter were a little more offensive than I would normally use, but none are really bad, you know, beyond what a lot of people say. Although I will tell you one translation now because it's funny, in one of the earlier chapters Norg exclaims "Holy Mother of God and all her wacky nephews!". Gotta love Firefly and the phrases they use (which is where I've stolen every Chinese phrase I use from)…**


	8. Assault

**CHAPTER 8**

**ASSAULT**

Olose threw off his torn tuxedo jacket and slipped into his battered brown one, throwing down his bow tie and looking much more like an adventurer, now in a dirty torn shirt (thanks to falling down the mountain), ripped and dusty black trousers and the old jacket he had taken off the fallen bandit. He marched out with Norg following him in confusion.

"What's going on?" Norg called after him.

"You've heard of Abaj Tuh?" He asked, not looking back.

"Who hasn't?" Norg cried in confusion.

"He's got Arcadia." Olose said bluntly. Norg stopped in shock.

"Wuh de ma." Norg gasped, before recovering his senses. Olose marched into the barracks and began taking weapons from the walls.

"I'm going to get her back." He stated.

"What? How?" Norg exclaimed. Olose strapped two swords to his back.

"I can track her by the scent she left. I'll follow her to Abaj's fortress, break in, and rescue her." He explained, grabbing two more swords and strapping them to his belt, followed by another two.

"You're going to break into a fortress? Alone?" Norg repeated in shock. Olose stuck four daggers in the back of his belt, and one in each of his boots.

"That's the plan." He answered casually.

"You can't do this alone." Norg said with a tone of warning in his voice.

"Why the hell not?" Snapped Olose, pulling two bows and two sets of quivers from the wall of weapons. "I'm immortal. I can't be hurt."

"You look pretty hurt to me!" Norg pointed out. Olose threw the bows and the quivers onto his back.

"I'll be fine." He stormed out of the barracks and Norg followed him.

"At least let me go with you!" Norg pleaded. "I can arrange the elvaan armies and get them ready to move out."

"No." Olose stated. "There's no time. Abaj wants Arcadia for revenge, not for a ransom. He might kill her as soon as he gets his hands on her. I have to move as quickly as possible."

"I'll be right behind you!" Norg called after Olose as he sprang out of the gate of San d'Oria, disappearing. He charged at incredible speeds on all fours, disappearing into the darkness.

Arcadia was pulled into a gigantic cave sometime later. Saying Abaj Tuh had a fortress was no exaggeration, she had passed through a massive wooden fortress, protected by gigantic heavy gates and with walls lined with archers. The cave sat at the back, protected by the fort surrounding it. She was still squirming in the arms of her powerful captor. It was fairly dark, but she could still make out expensive paintings hanging from the walls of the cave, and piles of gold and gems stacked all around. A gigantic golden throne had an overweight, yet powerful looking figure, sat in it.

"Lady Arcadia, how pleased I am to meet you." Abaj said sarcastically as he rose. She glared at him, but said nothing. "No hello?" He asked, sounding offended in the fakest way possible. "Well, I guess I'll just kill you then." He signalled to her captor who drew a sword.

"No! Wait!" She whimpered. Abaj held up a hand signalling for her captor to stop.

"Go on." Abaj prompted. "Why shouldn't I kill you?"  
"My family is very rich." She stuttered, trying to stall and buy time. "They can pay a large amount for my release." Abaj roared with laughter, holding out his arms and gesturing to his surroundings.  
"Money?" He laughed. "Do I look like I need money?" His grin turned into a scowl. "I will make the people of Tavnazia pay for what they did to me. They outlawed me! Tried to repel me! And they thought I would take no action?" He drew a long dagger from his belt. "Perhaps I'll cut off one of your fingers and mail them that first. That always scares them." He took a step closer, and Arcadia squirmed, trying to get away. "I'll make sure they know every little bit of torture I put you through. And nothing can stop me. They can throw all the money they want at me. I'm not letting you off. This is punishment for the entire city!"

"SIRRRRR!" Came an urgent sounding purr from down by the entrance to the cave.

"What is it?" Snapped Abaj at a small frightened looking mithra down by the entrance.

"We'rrrre underrrr attack!" She purred desperately.

"WHAT?" Boomed Abaj. "Impossible! Wipe them out!"

"That's just it, sirrrr." The young mithra said in concern. "It's not 'them'. It's 'him'".

"What?" Abaj snapped as Arcadia's face became a smile.

"It's just one guy!" The mithra cried desperately. "And we can't stop him! He's alrrrready thrrrrrough ourrrr outerrrr lines and apprrrroaching the forrrtress!"

"You dare to tell me that one man is breaking through my defences?" Abaj growled. The mithra nodded sheepishly. "Destroy him! Destroy him now!"

"We'rrre tarrying!" The mithra cried nervously. Abaj rose a mighty eyebrow.

"It couldn't be, could it?" He whispered. "Suse!" He snapped at the mithra. She jolted to attention.

"Yes sirrr?" She said, clearly frightened.

"Ready Ghoma." He smirked. "If he gets in here, I'll make sure the only way he's leaving is in pieces."

Olose slammed into the floor, three arrows lodged in his chest. He angrily sprang back up, ripping them from his body. He healed instantly, and unleashed arrows of his own. He hit one of the archers atop Abaj's fortress, and watched as he fell. The rest of his arrows missed. He had never been a good archer. He saw another hail of arrows coming in, and dove aside, dodging them, dropping his bow as he did so. He came up, drawing his second and firing more arrows. He hit a few more archers before he broke into a run, charging at the fortress. The odd arrow thudded into him, but he was unaffected. He reached the base of the fortress.

"Relax." One of the archers said to his companion confidently. "There's no way he can get up here." Olose leapt, clawing at the wooden wall, and scaled in easily. The archer's eyes went wide as Olose hit him over with a powerful thrust from his elbow. Olose threw down the bow and dropped the quiver, drawing two swords and closing in, slicing his way through the archers. Troops ran up, clutching swords. They closed in on Olose, attacking. Olose blocked the blades and kicked the first solider aside. The second came down in a sweep, cutting Olose's hand. He dropped a blade in a reflex, but renewed the assault with just one. Somebody fired an arrow, and it hit Olose's chest powerfully, hitting him off of the wall and causing him to drop his other sword.

He slammed into the dirt below as soldiers rushed down towards him. He got up, pulling the arrow out of his chest and throwing it at the nearest target. It lodged in the eye socket of an approaching solider, who went down screaming. He drew two more swords and began to fight back his attackers. He sliced through the soldiers with relative ease, they were panicking over his immortality. A gigantic galka marched towards him, in his hands a hugely heavy mace. Olose braced himself as the mace flew in, hitting aside one of his swords easily. Olose ran but the mace came back down again, hitting him. He flew across the fort, crashing into the wooden wall. He got up to see the galka storming towards him. He had lost his other sword in the fall, but was still unwounded thanks to his ability to regenerate. The galka lifted up the mace, reading to strike downwards. Olose grabbed a dagger from his belt and hurled it. It sliced the galka's wrist, and he howled with pain, dropping the mace. Olose hurled another dagger, hitting the galka square between the eyes, and it went down.

He breathed a sigh of relief, getting up and seeing more soldiers advance on him.

"Dammit. Don't you guys ever give up?" Olose cried, drawing his final two swords. "I'm glad I came prepared." They ran in, and he beat them back, but he was so drastically outnumbered they overwhelmed by pure force, until two galkas managed to get behind him and restrain him. He had caused huge amounts of destruction, but was now sufficiently pinned and couldn't move. They took the swords from his hands and threw them down.

"Now, let's see just how weapon resistant you are." Snarled one of the soldiers. A sudden noise echoed through the camp. "What?" Cried the soldier.

"Sounds like a war horn to me." Olose mocked. The soldiers began to run towards the walls of the fort. In the moment of distraction Olose hurled himself forwards into a front roll, breaking lose of the grip of his foes. He drew two of his daggers, using them to fend off the attacking soldiers. He beat two back, slashing them away. One galka swung in at him, but he rolled beneath its arm and stabbed it.

The soldiers climbed the wall and looked out over to see a huge group of elvaans stampeding towards them. Arrows flew in, hitting multiple soldiers from the wall.

"They'll never get through!" Cried the commander. "Those gates will hold. There aren't enough of them to break through our defences." He suddenly heard a creaking and turned to the gate in horror. "NO!" He bellowed as Olose swung open the mighty gates. "STOP HIM!" Soldiers rushed down towards Olose, but he beat them away with his daggers. The elvaans broke through into the fort, and a full scale battle broke out.

"YEEHAH!" Norg cried. "Told ya I'd be right behind you!" He called triumphantly. Olose smiled.

"Keep 'em busy. I'm going to get Arcadia!" Olose called.

"Will do!" Norg delivered a two fingered salute and Olose disappeared towards the cave.

Abaj stood furiously.

"What is going on out there?" He bellowed.

"Sounds like therrrre's an army!" Suse, the mithra, whimpered.

"Bah! I know! Go! Destroy them!" He ordered. His guards began to filter out. Suse got up to follow, but Abaj yanked her back by her tail. "Not you! I need you to speak to Ghoma!"

"He's rrrrready." She told him nervously. "But are you surrrrre him fighting is a good idea? Somebody could get hurrrrrt."

"That's the idea." Sighed Abaj. "Why do I keep you around?" He groaned.

"Because I'm the only one Gohma will listen too!" Suse said confidently.

"I captured him." Abaj proudly stated. "You're just a tool to make sure he does as he's told." Suse shrunk down.

"ABAJ!" Came a cry from the entrance to the cave. Abaj glared angrily. Olose Sampson stood in the entrance, grinning.

"OLOSE!" Arcadia cried happily, now unrestrained but too scared to move thanks to the presence of Abaj and his daggers.

"Where is Ghoma?" Boomed Abaj.

"Your lackeys have failed, Abaj." Olose taunted. "Don't make me deal with another one."

"Ghoma is no lackey!" Abaj laughed. "Call it, Suse!" Abaj ordered. Suse whistled uneasily. There was a loud rumbling and the ground seemed to shake. "Ghoma is a little pet of mine."

The ground cracked before Olose and from the ground burst a gigantic dark crimson armoured snake, with one gigantic yellow eye and two huge pincers at its front. It loomed over Olose, easily fifteen times taller than he was, hunched despite the huge height of the cave. It let out a high pitch squeal.

"Meet Ghoma." Grinned Abaj. Olose gulped.  
"Oh great." He sighed as it lunged at him. It tunnelled into the ground, and Olose stood there, nervously twiddling his daggers. He heard it rumble, and suddenly the ground beneath him collapsed as Ghoma burst from the ground. He hit the floor with a thud as it prepared to attack him again. It cocked its head back, ready to dive down on top of him. An arrow suddenly whipped into its eye, and it let out a loud squeal, pulling back and retreating into the ground.

"GHOMA!" Suse screamed in concern. Norg had a cocky grin across his face as he dropped his bow, drawing a sword.

"Miss me?" He asked. Norg threw a second blade to Olose, who caught it, sheathing his daggers. Ghoma burst out of the ground again, and lunged at Olose once more. Olose jumped it, running up its back and leaping back onto the ground as it snaked into the floor once more. Olose turned and swung his sword, hitting the armour. It clanged from it, causing sparks but no damage.

"We could be in trouble here!" Olose gulped.

"The eye! The eye is the target!" Norg called. Olose nodded as the ground rumbled once more.

"Here it comes again!" Olose said, bracing himself. Abaj had a huge grin on his face as he watched his pride and joy battle his enemies. Arcadia gripped the side of his throne, watching in horror and Suse fiddled nervously with her hands, looking very upset to see her pet battling.

Olose suddenly screamed in agony as Ghoma burst up behind him, impaling him on its tusk.

"OLOSE!" Arcadia screamed in horror. Abaj laughed in delight.

"OW!" Olose exclaimed, impaled on the creature. It roared, and dove back under ground, now with Olose pinned at the front of it.

"No!" Norg cried, diving and catching hold of the tail. The tail disappeared with Norg on it, beneath the ground. There was a pause, a deadly silence in which nobody dared to speak. Ghoma burst from the ground once more, with Olose still impaled on it, looking scraped and beaten up from being dragged through the ground. He was still alive however, his wounds having healed instantly. Ghoma squealed. Norg suddenly appeared, crawling out of the ground and up its hide, using the armoured plating as a foothold. He got near the head as it began to shake desperately, trying to get rid of him.

"Olose! Catch!" Norg cried, throwing his own sword to Olose (who had dropped his own when he had become impaled).  
"Thanks!" Olose smiled, catching the blade and turning himself to face Ghoma, despite the fact that he was still impaled. Ghoma brought its other tusk about, ready to rip Olose in two. Olose flung the sword, and it hurled into Ghoma's eye, sticking there. Ghoma let out a terrific scream, and crashed down forwards. Olose pulled himself off of the tusk painfully, and the hole in his body quickly reconstructed itself.

"GHOMA! NO!" Sobbed Suse. Olose took a deep breath, walking up to its eye and reclaiming the sword from it. Ghoma's tusks snapped together, and Olose just managed to miss them. They successfully ripped the sword in two however. It roared back up, ready to attack once more.

"Doesn't this thing ever die?" Exclaimed Norg. Olose drew his daggers again and threw them. One bounced off of Ghoma's tusk, but the other struck home, right in the eye. Ghoma didn't roar this time. It just toppled back, causing Abaj, Suse and Arcadia to run to the side as it crashed down upon Abaj's throne, destroying it. Ghoma's tusks jittered, barely moving. The creature let out a soft moan, and died.

"YEEHAH!" Cheered Norg, pumping a fist in the air.

"NO!" Boomed Abaj. "NO! DESTROY THEM!" Ghoma didn't move. "SUSE! DESTROY THEM!"

"You killed my Ghoma!" She sobbed, running down at Olose, who was once again without a weapon. He quickly drew the two remaining daggers he had from his boots, ready to defend himself. Suse held two daggers of her own in her hands, and her tail snaked around, picking up a third.

"Interesting." Olose remarked as she lunged angrily with all of them. She wasn't very skilful, and Olose found it easy to block and beat them away. "I don't want to hurt you." He warned.

"I can't say the same!" She spat, attacking again, swinging with each blade. Olose sighed, knocking one aside hard. The blade clattered to the ground. She lunged with her tail and Olose swung aside, dodging the blade completely and slicing her tail clean off. She screamed in pure agony, dropping down, overwhelmed with pain. She chocked on her own tears, curling up into a foetal position.

"Get up, dammit!" Abaj bellowed. Suse sobbed on the floor.

"It hurrrrrrts!" She choked. "It hurrrrts!" Olose sighed, feeling guilty.

"Just stay down and I won't kill you." He stated grimly. Suse looked up teary eyes, and pushed herself away from him, the bloody stump of her tail leaving a trail as she did so. She pushed herself up against the cave wall, bringing her knees up to her chest. Arcadia ran down to Olose, and embraced him. Olose let go of Arcadia, sheathed his daggers, and picked up the sword he had dropped.

"You won't get away with this!" Abaj cried angrily.

"Abaj, if you shut up now, I won't kill you." Olose said calmly. "Arcadia is safe, I've done what I came here to do." Olose smiled, and Abaj let out an angry growl.

"Mark my words boy, and mark them well," Abaj snarled "If you let me live, I will make you pay for what you've done."

"No you won't!" Olose snapped, equally angry. "You're fortress is destroyed and your followers have been defeated. You won't cause anymore trouble." He smiled slightly. "You're gonna spend a nice long time in an elvaan jail cell."

"I'll escape." Abaj taunted. "And I'll hunt you down."

"With what?" Olose spat. "Your tailless mithra friend there?" Suse was shaking, and crying , with her legs pulled tightly to her chest still. "Admit it, you're finished." Olose turned and walked away.

He led Arcadia out while Norg dealt with restraining Abaj. He passed Nadia on the way, who was directing her own squad through the tunnels to join Norg. Arcadia embraced him tightly.

"Thank you." She said tearfully. "For coming for me." Olose smiled.  
"I'm your bodyguard." He stated. "That's what I do. I protect you." He paused. "I'm sorry I let this happen."

"It was not your fault." Arcadia told him. "Thank you." A tear ran down her face. Her formal training taught her not to cry. Besides anything else, crying would make her make-up run, which wasn't a look she ever sought for, but in this case she couldn't hold it back.

"So, how does being your bodyguard pay?" Olose smirked.

"As much as you would like." She responded with a sweet smile.

"Oh, then I have just the thing." Olose answered, and for a moment, Arcadia thought he was going to kiss her. "I have this hole in the back of my jacket now. Think you could fix it?" He grinned and Arcadia rolled her eyes.

**Author's Note: I like this chapter. I found it fun to write. However, thanks to good ol' Microsoft not being satisfied I haven't given them all of my money for Microsoft Office, and just use Microsoft Works, it crashed and I had to write it all again. Not that I'm bitter! Oh no!**

**And in good ol' Vivli tradition I stole a bad guy from another game. An even bigger stretch, but the advantage of writing 600 years before FFXI means I can make up monsters, so I stole Ghoma from another game I'm a fan of. I wonder if anybody knows which one!**

**And to point out a little thing about names. I suck with names. But a few bits to point out. Olose, I've said before in an author's note for the FFXI Chronicles is "Solo" backwards, with an 'e' to make it sound better, because originally Olose was going to be a Han Solo type character. He's changed a bit since then. In the same vein, and as a direct tribute to this, Abaj is "Jabba" backwards, with only one 'b' to make it look better. Well, he was a crime lord and it fitted. And Suse is because I typoed "Susie" which I was going to use because it was a hilariously unthreatening name for a villain, and stuck with Suse in the end. I'm sure you were all very interesting in that.**

**I just wanted to point it out before somebody spots I'm using mispelt Star Wars names backwards…**

**Oh, and a final warning. Something is wrong with my computer. I have no idea what. It takes forever to boot up now, and I have all the technical skills of a small and inoffensive pebble, so I have no idea what's wrong. So if I disappear and stop updating, my computer fried itself and I'm in the process of failing to fix it. Let's hope that doesn't happen!**

**All computer issues aside, this is nowhere near the end, and just the end of the first story arc, in case anybody was confused! Thanks for reading so far!**


	9. Departing

**CHAPTER 9**

**DEPARTING**

The sun gleamed down on San d'Oria, it no longer being racked by the storms that had gripped it in the days now passed. Arcadia, Olose, Nadia and Norg stood by the mighty gate.

"Well, see ya around." Olose said to Norg, shaking his hand.

"It was fun." Norg laughed. Nadia frowned, her arm hanging in a sling.

"It was painful!" She protested.

"You weren't impaled on the jaw of a gigantic snake monster!" Olose cried.

"Well, we can't all regenerate like you." She told him. Olose paused.

"Is my secret actually a secret to anyone?" He asked sarcastically. Norg and Arcadia laughed.

"You do realise we will be required to explain this when we arrive in Tavnazia?" Arcadia pointed out. Olose rose an eyebrow.

"Oh, that's going to be fun." He sighed. "You decided what you're going to tell your parents?"

"I would appreciate it if we could leave out the fact that you rescued me originally." Arcadia told him. "I set out to prove myself, and I failed. I have no desire for them to discover that."

"Just say I rescued when Abaj showed up." Olose shrugged. "Makes me seem like a big hero then."

"You _are _a big hero!" Nadia pointed out. Everybody stared at her for the strangely uncharacteristic comment. "Well, he is." Nadia tried to shrug, but winced as her arm fired with pain. Norg laughed.

"Well, this is getting to be one of those long sentimental goodbyes, so get out of here." Norg told the others. Olose and Arcadia laughed.

"It's not a goodbye, it's a 'see ya later'." Olose explained.

"Thank you for everything." Arcadia said with a curtsey.

"Let's go." Olose gestured for the gate. "Bye!"

"See ya!" Norg cried.

"Bye." Nadia said simply. Olose and Arcadia walked out from the mighty San d'Orian gates and into the wilderness.

The journey back to Tavnazia was one that was long and hard, for Arcadia at least. Olose remained unfazed, but Arcadia struggled, becoming worn out quickly, and often finding it difficult to traverse the rough terrain Olose kept picking for the short cuts he had come up with. They were mostly silent while travelling, except for the odd direction from Olose. It felt cold, but Arcadia was actually glad of it. She still felt a pounding attraction to Olose, and just focusing on getting back to Tavnazia meant that she didn't need to dwell on it too much, or let it grow, as it often felt like it was when she talked to him. She knew she had to crush it down. The scandal of her falling in love with her bodyguard would be huge, and something she couldn't allow.

Olose was also concerned about their relationship, but for a different reason. He was finding it harder and harder to picture Talia in his head. He felt as if he was replacing her, trying to sweep her aside and forget what he did. He could never forget that. He had killed her, and should never be freed from that guilt. He could never forgive himself, and never allow her to be replaced, which was exactly what he felt like he was doing. He dwelled on this silently, hardly saying anything.

As soon as Tavnazia fell into view however, after what felt like days of travelling, they snapped back into behaving how they always had been.

"Now ain't that a site." Remarked Olose, staring down on the gigantic city.

"You have never seen Tavnazia before?" Arcadia inquired. Olose shook his head.

"Lived in the woods, remember?" He said jokingly. She smiled.

"It is the greatest construction of hume engineering in the land." She told him, as if she was advertising it. "It is truly a great feat."

"Perhaps, my lady," Came a voice from behind them, and the two swivelled around, "But it is no match for the combined hume and galkan city under construction as we speak." The two found themselves facing a huge galka that loomed over them.

"You mean Bastok, right?" Olose guessed. "That city has been under construction for years."  
"Dammed straight." Snapped the galka. "And when it's finished, it'll be mightier than this pathetic hole of a city. It'll crush those dirty elvaans as well."

"Charming." Olose smiled to Arcadia.

"Name's Sotobu." The galka grinned behind his big black beard.

"There a reason you've randomly started talking to us?" Olose asked.

"I just came here to generally tell everybody how superior Bastok is." Sotobu told them. Olose rolled his eyes.

"What delightful people you meet at your home." He said with a sarcastic grin to Arcadia. "And we just came from San d'Oria!" He threw to Sotobu. Sotobu frowned.

"Well, we'll sort out San d'Oria." He gloated. "You think this city will last before it comes under elvaan control? You know how they're expanding. There's no stopping them."

"Except for you. Right." Olose sighed. "Since when did nations need advertisers?" Sotobu rose a mighty eyebrow.

"I'm not advertising, just telling the truth." He pointed out. "Besides, I'm here to meet with some people."

"Who?" Arcadia inquired.

"Lord and Lady De Lily." He answered. Arcadia looked surprised.

"She's their daughter." Olose gestured to Arcadia. Sotobu rose an eyebrow once again.

"Ah." He sighed. "That forms a bit of a moot point then."

"What do you mean?" Olose inquired.

"I was sent by Bastok to attempt to locate Lady Arcadia. She had been missing you see, and to display the capabilities of Bastok we were sent to find her." He answered. "But if she's here, then clearly you don't need my services."

"Uh oh." Olose muttered, and Arcadia didn't appear overly confident.

"Looks like you might be in trouble." Sotobu laughed to Arcadia. "I don't think they're going to be happy about you running off like that."

"I simply did what I was intending to without bodyguards." She stated.

"You got kidnapped!" Sotobu cried. "We know what happened in San d'Oria. They thought you might be dead!"

"We should have stayed in San d'Oria." Olose grumbled.

Hours later Olose was slumped in a dingy tavern he had found. Both he and Arcadia had decided that it was for the best that she was left alone to try and explain what had happened to her parents, and Olose had no desire to stand around feeling like a third wheel. He was clutching a drink, but actually drinking it was pointless. Alcohol couldn't affect his rapidly regenerating body system, which meant it was more for effect than anything else. Sotobu on the other hand, was less successful. He had not only gotten very drunk, but was now stood upon the bar ranting about how fantastically great Bastok would be. Olose sighed and opted for trying to ignore him.

Sotobu eventually got very drunk and passed out, much to the relief of everybody in the bar. Olose stayed slouched over the table, feeling oddly depressed. He wasn't quite sure why, everything was looking up in his life. He was out of the woods, at least, and could now begin working towards a real life, whenever the moon didn't interrupt. Perhaps it was because he was finally moving on, finally leaving behind everything that had gone so wrong for him, it made him sad to lose it. In a way, it was like he was saying a final goodbye to Talia and his old home. He swirled the drink around. Alcohol was supposed to be a good way of relieving stress and forgetting bad memories, and so he found himself badly wishing that it would affect him. He downed the contents of the glass, and banged it back down on the table. For a moment he felt light headed, but it quickly faded away. He sighed heavily.

He perked up the instant he caught that familiar scent, over the smell of the people in the tavern and the alcohol. He glanced across the bar to see Arcadia standing awkwardly in the entrance. She scanned the bar, but clearly felt very out of place. Olose got up and walked over to her, smiling.

"Hi." He beamed to repress his feelings of depression. "How'd it go with your parents?" Arcadia smiled surprisingly, looking genuinely happy.

"Well." She answered. "Well, not well." She paused, slightly confused over how often she'd said the word 'well'. "But that made it well." She paused again, once again confused.

"Do you want to start again?" Olose smirked.

"It is not complicated." Arcadia said, rolling her eyes and intentionally patronising Olose. Olose folded his arms in mock offence, and they shared a smirk. "My parents were angry and upset about what happened to be, and took is as evidence that I could not possibly look after myself."

"Bad, right?" Olose guessed.

"Yes. And no." Arcadia smiled as Olose became confused. "As I said, it is not complicated. My parents became so concerned they would not let me do anything on my own. My father is waiting outside, he would not even let me walk through town on my own."

"Still confused here, Arcadia." Olose said casually, as if he was getting used to that state of being.

"Well, they said the only way they would ever trust me to travel again is if I had a protector of great worth, and then asked if it was possible I could find the person who rescued me from Abaj." She paused, smiling. "I said I thought it might be possible."

"So, for you to be allowed to continue having any freedom whatsoever, I would have to be your bodyguard?" Olose confirmed. "Which I am anyway?" Arcadia smiled.

"Yes." She answered simply. "Of course, they don't know that, so technically they are going to be greatly appreciative that you've agreed to protect me, and think it is an act of kindness stemming from the conversation we're having now."

"Hm, maybe I could push for a pay raise then." Olose joked.

"I was not aware I was paying you anything." Arcadia shot back, her formal pattern of speech interfering with her wit.

"Well, let's get out of here." Olose said, moving towards the door. Arcadia followed eagerly, feeling increasingly uncomfortable in the dark tavern.

Olose stepped outside to be stopped by a man dressed in a dark green expensive looking coat, dark black trousers and an expensive looking shirt and tie.

"You, sir, are Olose Sampson?" He inquired. Olose nodded nervously. "I am the father of Arcadia De Lily. I believe we owe you her life."

"It was nothing." Olose laughed. "You know, a giant snake, a few dozen soldiers, the odd galka, a rather annoying mithra, stuff like that. Nothing I can't handle."

"Urm, indeed." Nodded Arcadia's father. "Has she approached about our request?"

"You mean to be a bodyguard?" Inquired Olose. "Yeah. I like the idea. Sounds fun." He paused as he saw the scowl coming from her father's face. "Urm, I mean, I'd take it very responsibly. Nobody would get past me."

"See? I told you he would agree." Arcadia smiled to her father. Her father smiled back.

"Thank you. For everything you have done." He said, taking and shaking Olose's hand.

"I was happy to help." Olose gave in response.

"We can arrange living quarters for you." Her father continued. "You can stay here, and accompany Arcadia at all times. I don't want her going anywhere on her own."

"Daaaaad!" Arcadia whined quite humorously, sounding more like a child than her usual upper class tones. "I can go some places on my own!"

"Yes. Indeed. Don't follow her into the bathroom." Arcadia's father told Olose sarcastically, and Olose laughed.

"I like this guy." Olose beamed. "He's hilarious." Arcadia's father crossed his arms with a deep cough.

"Indeed." He rumbled. "Now, we are to have dinner tonight. We would appreciate it if you could attend, Mr Sampson." He offered.  
"I'd love to." Olose replied happily. "And just call me Olose."

"Indeed I shall. In public, I am afraid you will have to call me Lord De Lily, but feel free to address me as Andrew in a more relaxed setting." Andrew offered as he walked.

"Right, gotcha." Olose nodded. "Now, I heard the promise of food." Andrew laughed. "You have no idea how long it's been since I've eaten cooked food."

"What about the buffet?" Arcadia asked.

"I didn't eat any of that." Olose answered in a shrug. "Besides, I barely classify that as food."

"And what do you classify as food?" Arcadia questioned, sounding slightly like she was mocking him.

"A full sheep. Now that's food. Meat right off the bone, and a lot of it." Olose grinned.

"Sheep?" Andrew questioned. "Convenient." He smiled. "Guess what we're having for dinner."

"Oh, I'm going to like this job." Olose said happily.

Elsewhere, in the depths of an elvaan jail cell, Abaj watched the moon rise in the sky.

"It is only a matter of time." He said to himself in the darkness. "We are children of the moon, you and I, Olose Sampson. A confrontation between us is inevitable."

"Who ya talkin' to in there?" Snapped a guard from outside.

"Myself." Came a casual response. "I am alone, am I not? Or is there a flaw in your precious jail cell?" The guard stared in angrily.

"Don't make me come in there!" He threatened.

"But then I will not be alone and so be justified in talking." Abaj pointed out. The guard rose an eyebrow.

"Dammed weirdoes." He muttered, wondering off. Abaj smiled, turning back to the window.

"You have taken everything from me, Olose." Abaj said bitterly. "And so I will take everything from you."

**Author's Notes: Sorry this chapter is shorter than usual, I really suck and ran out of things to happen in it, and the next chapter kinda vitally has to be separate. So this entire chapter was filler. And so crap. So sorry you had to endure that. Hopefully it'll get better again, with more chapters like the last (I actually like that one).**

**Oh, and yes, Abaj ranting to himself at the end makes no sense, but I needed a dramatic device to create tension, so decided to make him slightly crazy so that I could have him talking to himself. I often wonder who villains are talking to when they rant to themselves, hence the guard interrupting. Anyway, that's about all I have to say (or at least all I can remember I had to say), so thanks for reading this chapter, and sorry it was so crappy. I mean, I normally think what I write is bad, but this chapter I particularly felt turned out incredibly poorly. If I wasn't so lazy I'd rewrite the whole dammed thing. But anyway. That's besides the point.**

**Oh, and Ghoma from the last chapter is always an early boss in The Legend of Zelda, often a one-eyed big bug like thing, in the Wind Waker it was a large snake (that dove around in lava), so I used it. I love Zelda, so decided to homage it. I suck with character names, so might stick a 'Link' in there somewhere later as another nod. I'm unoriginal like that.**


	10. Assassination

**Author's Note: This chapter is much shorter than usual. Sorry about that. I used a cheap cliff-hanger because I'm drained of energy and didn't want to try and write the next leg, although it should be fairly interesting and actually probably works better as a stand alone chapter than what I was going to write. Sorry about the short length regardless though.**

**CHAPTER 10**

**ASSASSINATION**

Three years had passed since Olose officially became Arcadia's bodyguard, and they had gone by mostly without interest. Olose and Arcadia had managed to repress all of their feelings for each other over the three years, Olose getting peeps at Arcadia's society and learning exactly why they could never be together, even when he felt ready to admit his real feelings.

There had been one night, when travelling, that a storm had set in. Olose had led Arcadia to a cave where they could stay until the storm passed. Arcadia was freezing in the cold so Olose took her in his arms to keep her warm. It was that night they had shared their one and only kiss.

Olose shook his head. That had been months ago and he shouldn't be thinking of it. He was lounged on a bed in Tavnazia, in a small house Arcadia's family had had constructed for him. He had just returned having spent the last three days in the wilderness for the cycle of the moon. It was always pleasant to be able to spend the night after lounging in bed, not worrying about the transformation and the resulting rampage. He took a heavy breath, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere.

His eyes shot open. There was another scent in the room. A foreign one. He grabbed his sword from under his bed just as a blur swung down in an attack. He blocked it instinctively before another swing came in. He blocked that too.

"You're really good." He told his attacker, a black cloaked mithra assassin, her entire body covered in black fabric, her face behind a mask. She swung in again with incredible speed, knocking Olose's sword aside and impaling him. "Really good." Olose confirmed. She pulled out the sword and grunted, seeing Olose standing unharmed. She threw down the sword and quickly drew a stake, hurling it into his heart. Olose looked down. "Nope. Not a vampire. Try again." He laughed, pulling out the stake and holding out his sword. She quickly yanked out a silver dagger. "That's better. I might have to try now." He smirked. She swung in with the dagger, and Olose blocked it, stepping in and throwing his elbow in her face. She back flipped onto his bed. "Did you know the last mithra I fought got her tail cut off?" Olose taunted. She scowled at him, diving. He swung his sword outwards, blocking the dagger and knocking it out of her hand. She drew a second from her belt. "Just how much do you have on that thing?" Olose asked, noticing her large black belt was full of equipment hanging from it. The mithra didn't answer, but back flipped, kicking Olose in the jaw. As soon as she landed she lunged, but Olose blocked the attack, sliding his sword down to her neck. She swung under it and came up behind him. He flung his sword behind his back, blocking her attack. "Keep this up and I may have to shut up and get serious!" Olose threatened. She swung her blade in again and Olose blocked it downwards, spinning behind her and plucking from her the black face mask that concealed her features. She spun back, viciously.

She had tight brown her pulled back in a pony tail and ears that twitched as they straightened, now free from the pressure of the mask. She sneered at Olose, her dark brown eyes probing him. She swung in slashing, and he blocked it. "Those would be some pretty eyes if they weren't hell bent on killing me." Olose taunted. She swung again. "Oh come on, now you're just being predictable." He laughed as he blocked her dagger and knocked it from her hand. She sprang up into the rafters above in one mighty jump. "Oh, that's new. Come down from there!" There was pause, and her tail swung down, coiling around his neck. "Hey!" Olose gagged. "I may be immortal, but I still prefer to breath!" He choked, lifting his sword up to her tail. "Don't make me cut off another mithra's tail!" She tightened the grip and in a reflex he dropped the sword. "This isn't funny now!" He cried, grabbing her tail and yanking her to the ground. She hit with a thump and a yelp. Olose still had a firm grip on her tail, and swung her around by it.

Olose's strength, aided by lycanthropy, and the rather light mithra, meant that he had complete control over her and swung her around like she was some kind of flail. He let her go and she sailed straight through his window with a crash. He peered out of the window and watched her flee, clearly deciding he was too difficult to take out. "Well, that was weird." Olose said to himself. It took a few moments before he leapt out of the window and ran from his tiny house to Arcadia's manor, which was on the same grounds as him anyway. All it took was a run across the extensive gardens and he soon arrived at the massive building. He sniffed the air, and picked out each individual scent. Nobody was there that shouldn't be.

He journeyed back into his home and collapsed on his bed, looking at the smashed window. He sighed, and fell back to sleep, knowing his keen senses would alert him if anything went wrong.

His eyes darted open before Arcadia got near him. He sat up quickly and she forced a smile.

"What is it with you and windows?" She asked, pointing to the smashed window with an incredulous look on her face. Olose grinned.

"Oh, that. Long story. Involves an assassin." He summed up, realising it wasn't at all a long story and that was all he had to say.

"It may have to wait." Arcadia advised. Olose was slightly surprised. She was normally desperate to hear of anything happening, especially something as major as a fight on her own estate. "I have some bad news." She explained. Olose's grin vanished instantly.

"What is it?" He asked, standing, clearly concerned. She turned to him and placed a smooth hand upon his cheek.

"Norg is dead." She stated. Olose was clearly taken back by this, and sat down.

"What happened?" He croaked.

"Murdered apparently by an escaped convict." Arcadia answered, trying to maintain her composure.

"Murdered by an escaped convict?" Olose pondered. "No. That can't be right. It can't just be coincidence that somebody tried to kill me the same night Norg was killed."

"What do you think is going on?" Arcadia asked nervously.

"I don't know. But I know what I need." Olose announced.

"And what is that?" Arcadia looked lost.

"A newspaper!" Olose answered, running and jumping out of the window, vanishing from the estate and heading towards town.

"I hate it when he does that." Grumbled Arcadia to herself.

Olose grabbed a copy of the Vana'diel Tribune from a news stand, only recently introduced as the ultimate source of information in Vana'diel, and began to flick through it. He sighed heavily as he read what he already expected. He placed the paper back, not needing to read the rest or even see it. The headline had been enough.

He sat down and hung his hands in his heads. He smelt Arcadia as she approached and looked up at her. She placed a hand on his back and slid down beside him.

"What is it?" She asked. "What is wrong?"

"Abaj Tuh has escaped prison." Olose bluntly stated. Arcadia visibly straightened.

"And he killed Norg?" She inquired.

"And sent an assassin after me." Olose replied blankly. "Clearly he feels some resentment for his defeat and imprisonment."

"What do you think will happen now?" Arcadia asked. Olose sighed.

"Norg is dead. I'm next." Olose stated. "I'd imagine he's coming for me. Or whatever assassin he got to kill Norg. He's not going to give up just because I defeated his first attempt."

"So what are you going to do?" Arcadia inquired.

"Confront him." Olose stated. "Kill him. All I can do." He got up and began to walk away.

"We could run away." Arcadia suggested. "Leave it. He is dangerous! He knows who you are. He will find a way to kill you."

"Not if I kill him first." Olose managed a slight smile. "In the meantime, make sure you stay safe." He stated, turning and walking away. Arcadia sat there, gob smacked and unable to think of anything to say.

Olose stood outside the city, waiting casually for his opponent. He picked up the scent, and within moments saw Abaj heading towards him. He rose an eyebrow.

"You've come in person, Abaj?" He asked.

"Of course." Abaj smiled. "I'm sorry I couldn't make it earlier, but I was killing your friend."

"You'll pay for that." Olose warned, drawing his sword.

"Do you even have a brain in that head of yours, boy?" Abaj snarled. "Even if you were to defeat me here today, I would return. I would come back to get you. Even if you beat me away at every chance, what of your precious Arcadia? I doubt she's as able as you."  
"You dare harm her and I will not give you the pleasure of death!" Olose cried. Abaj chuckled.

"Your scent tells me your angry." He laughed. Olose's eyes went wide.  
"My scent?" He looked on in disbelief. "No. You can't be!" He gasped.

"Oh yes, my boy. I am." He smiled. "The last of the werewolves. Or so I believed I was, until I met you."

"Nice way to greet the last of your race." Olose grumbled. "Trying to kill them."

"My boy, your survival was an oversight." Olose shot him a glance of confusion. "For you see, it was I who betrayed the secret location of our last tribe. It was I who allowed the elvaan soldiers to wipe us out."

"You what?" Olose cried in disbelief.

"How do you think I got to where I am?" Abaj asked with a grin. "The reward for the destruction of the werewolves was impressively high."

"I will kill you, Abaj. Mark my words." Olose growled.  
"Try it." Laughed Abaj. "You know you're sword cannot harm me. I am like you."

"We'll see!" Olose lunged at Abaj, but as he did, Abaj let out a mighty roar and burst into a mighty werewolf form, his fur black and his eyes burning red with rage.

Abaj's monstrous form lunged at Olose, and the two dived into battle.


	11. Death

**Author's Note: This chapter is stunningly short. Less than a page. I apologise, but this was done for a reason. My brother returned home today from University. He had been home three hours and managed to close the chapter I was working on and I lost it all.**

**However, I rewrote the bit of the chapter that starts it, and kept it short. It's a dramatic and very important moment in terms of the story, and I actually think it works better as its own very short scene. It's probably unsatisfying and disappointing to read, but it's a very important moment and I feel this way it's significantly emphasised. The next chapter will be longer, I promise. Back to normal length hopefully. It deals with what would have happened mostly in the rest of this chapter, but personally, that probably would have ruined the effect of the moments dealt with here.**

**Anyway, enough excuse making from me. Sorry for the extreme shortness. I know it's a bit of a letdown. Hopefully it works as dramatic though.**

**CHAPTER 11**

**DEATH**

Olose was caught off guard as Abaj lunged at him, sending him flying backwards. He crashed against a bank leading up into the forest that overlooked Tavnazia. He scampered into it, having dropped his sword, his mind racing.

It wasn't a full moon. Abaj's transformation had been triggered by will power. Will power Olose couldn't match. He would have to fight Abaj with his own skill and abilities, which pretty much meant he was doomed.

Abaj lunged at him, sending him flying. He crashed down and Abaj tore into his stomach. Olose drew a dagger and stabbed Abaj with it, causing enough of a reaction for him to get up and for his wounds to heal.

"You can't win Olose." Warned Abaj in a growl from his wolf-like mouth. "You can't kill me. You can run, but if you escape I will kill your loved ones until you surrender to me. Arcadia will die if you do not, Olose."  
"What happens if you die first?" Olose taunted desperately. "Haven't planned for that one, have you?" Abaj growled.

"It is impossible, Olose." Abaj laughed. Olose took a few steps backwards and looked down. A river ran through the woods, below, it was quite a drop to it and the waters raged. Olose began to smirk, he could knock Abaj into it and finish him off. Abaj lunged and Olose swung aside. Abaj turned and landed skilfully on the edge. Olose ran at him and jumped, but Abaj just batted him away causing Olose to crash down.

"So much for that plan." He grumbled.

"Surrender Olose." Abaj laughed. "You can't win. But you can give in. Die. End your pathetic life. I have no desire to harm Arcadia, or any more of your friends. My grudge is with you, but if you continue to survive, I shall use whatever methods I can to strike at you. Of that you can be assured." Olose sighed, closing his eyes.

He could see now that he could not win. Not in combat. But there was one other way. Olose didn't need to win. As long as Arcadia lived, he was happy.

"I will not give in, Abaj." He stated firmly. "So do your worse." Abaj leapt at him, tearing outwards with his claw. Olose had lied. He didn't raise his guard. He didn't try to dodge the blow. He gave in. Abaj caught him in the face perfectly, ripping it from his skull completely. Olose stumbled back, faceless, left with a bloody pile of torn muscle and ripped eyes, and fell backwards into the river. Abaj grunted. The tear must have damaged his brain enough to kill even Olose. He looked down into the water, seeing the blood in it as the body was rapidly washed away, bouncing off vicious rocks. He smiled triumphantly.

Olose Sampson was dead.


	12. Rebirth

**CHAPTER 12  
REBIRTH**

A figure was sprawled on his back, the river washing over him and his back dug against the muddy river bank. He could feel his own face weaving itself back together as the bone extended to reform the front of the skull, the muscle reconstructed itself and the skin wove itself over his face, back together once more. His entire body began to surge. The figure arched upwards on the floor and for a moment fur exploded all over his body. A momentary transformation.

He could feel it in his brain. He knew what was happening. The damage was too great. His body could not reconstruct his face. It was trying, but failing. It was too complex and too damaged. The fur grew over him as he arched upwards, yelling in a combination of terror and pain. The fur suddenly surged backwards and he collapsed, leaving him sprawled on the ground by the river.

The figure opened his eyes and flung his hands to his face. It was still there. His entire body felt different. He could somehow tell what happened, despite not actually knowing. The damage had been too great, so his body had taken the only way out. It had started over. It had regenerated an entirely new body. It had wiped the slate clean and regenerated him as it saw fit.

The figure rose to his feet and looked into the river. The reflection staring back at him was not his own. It was a new face. A new one created by his regeneration powers. The skin tone wasn't even the same. He looked at his own arms, rolling up the sleeves of his water soaked jacket. His entire body had changed to match his face in the spasm on the floor. He sighed.

Olose Sampson was dead.

The Olose Sampson. The one that had a life and a past had been replaced by the stranger that now stared back at him. A smile crept across his face. He had survived, but was dead. Abaj would never be able to find out that he was still alive.

He suddenly dropped to his knees as he realised. Abaj was a werewolf. He'd know that this regeneration process was possible. If he never found Olose's body, he would watch for him. And the only place he'd always watch was Arcadia's home. If he was to live, and Olose was to die, he could never return to see Arcadia again. He let tears swell up in his eyes, he didn't have the energy to fight them. They ran freely as he knelt by the river, saying in his head the goodbye to Arcadia he would never get the true opportunity to say.

"Olose?" Came a sharp voice. He must have still looked like Olose Sampson from behind, his hair and clothes were still the same. He snapped to his feet and turned. "You're not Olose!" The woman stood before him snapped. The figure smiled.

"Nadia." He said warmly. He walked towards her, and she looked over him, the blood on his clothes and by the river, and managed to figure it out.

"You are him, aren't you?" She walked towards him.

"I was." He replied. "I haven't seen you in years." He commented, trying to remain calm. Nadia managed a smile.

"I know. I got kicked out of the army." She held up what once had been her arm, now just a stump. "You can see why."

"You lost your arm?" Olose exclaimed, caught off guard and only just noticing.

"Turned out the orc that caught it had a poison tipped weapon. Had to be amputated to keep me alive and stop the infection from spreading. Although after that, I was deemed useless and thrown out. Norg tried to keep me in, but failed." She paused. "I came here to see you because you were a friend of Norg. Arcadia told me what you were up to. You're lucky I found you."

"I wouldn't call it luck." Olose grumbled.

"Come on." She smiled. "We'll head back. Arcadia will be glad to see you're still alive."

"No." Olose said calmly, trying to repress any emotion. "I can't go back."  
"What? Why?" Nadia snapped.

"If Abaj discovers I am still alive, he will do anything to get to me. He will harm and kill Arcadia, and anybody else I know. And he will be watching her, to see if I survived." He explained.

"You look different now! Abaj won't be able to tell-" Nadia was cut short.

"Abaj is a werewolf as well!" Olose interrupted. "Of course he'll know. I must disappear. I cannot let Abaj know I am still alive."

"You're going to run away?" Inquired Nadia. "I never figured you for a coward, Olose."

"I'm not." Growled Olose. "There is nothing cowardly about walking away, leaving your entire life behind to protect the ones you care about! I am immortal, I can fight Abaj as much as I want, but I cannot win. And I cannot risk the ones I care about. I cannot risk Arcadia. I will walk away and I will allow Abaj to believe I am dead." Nadia paused sadly.

"Can I at least tell Arcadia you survived?" She asked gently.

"Tell her. Please." Olose managed to say tearfully. "But make sure you are alone. And tell her to never speak of it. If this ever blows over, I will return."

"I understand." Nadia sighed. "Where are you going to go?"

"That little port town probably, the one that Bastok just constructed between themselves and San d'Oria. Seblina was it? I'll hit the waves. Get a boat, get a crew, keep sailing, nobody'll catch me out there." Olose explained. Nadia smiled slightly.

"A life on the waves, leaving this place behind?" She asked. "Need a first mate?"

"Welcome aboard." Olose managed to smile.

"I'll meet you in Seblina then." Nadia nodded. "I'll tell Arcadia. If anybody else asks I'll say I didn't find you."

"I understand." Olose nodded. He paused, slipping out of his brown jacket. "Give this to Arcadia." He said. "I-I always wore it as the old me. The new me shouldn't have it." He explained.

"I will." Nadia smiled. "I'll see you in Seblina."

"Be careful. Make sure nobody finds out apart from Arcadia. She mustn't mention it to anybody." Olose turned and left. Nadia clutched the jacket in her one arm, turned, and left.

Some time later Olose was slumped against a table in a tavern in Seblina. He hadn't eaten or drunk since he had arrived, and didn't really feel he needed to. He had acquired some new clothes, wearing now a dark yellow shirt and a crimson jacket, with dark blue trousers. It didn't match in the slightest, but he didn't care. It made him look a little eccentric and crazy, but he was willing to accept that. It kept most people away from him. He had also cut his hair so that it was short, making him look completely different from his past self. He hadn't noticed before, but his hair had actually lightened to a brown colour in the transformation. When it had been long it had been harder to tell.

There was a sudden rumble and somebody rushed into the bar. He sighed, looking over at what was going on. Somebody bolted in and forced herself into the corner, curling up, clearly very upset and frightened. She was a mithra, Olose could tell that easily, but other than that he didn't much care. She continued to sob, which began to annoy him. Not only that, but he was feeling pretty down and thought that helping somebody else may make him feel slightly better.

He got up and headed over to her, crouching down by her curled up form.

"Are you okay?" He asked, trying to sound compassionate. She shook her head. "What's wrong? What happened?" He inquired.

"They hurrrt me." She whined. Olose suddenly sighed, putting the scent, the face and the voice together. He let out a loud groan. He couldn't believe it. His eyes wondered to her tail, to find that it wasn't there. He already knew it wouldn't be. He had cut it off three years ago.

"Who hurt you?" He sighed, trying to avoid the fact that he was the same person who had de-tailed her.

"The otherrrr mithrrrra." She groaned. Olose looked over her and could see that she was badly bruised.

"Here. I'll get you a drink." Olose offered. She was still crying. "It might make you feel better."

He wondered over to the bar, and the bartender sighed.

"That one's been running in here almost everyday crying like that." He told Olose. "She hides in here from the others outside. Nobody wants to start a fight in the tavern because it'll degrade into a full barroom brawl."

"Why do they beat her up?" Olose inquired. "She seems harmless enough."

"Some mithran honour thing. She has no tail. Some bastard cut it off." Olose suddenly felt very guilty as the bartender spoke. "So they like to pick on her for it."

"You know what she likes to drink?" Olose inquired. The bartender shook his head.

"She never drinks. She just cowers in that corner, crying." He answered.

"Just give me a water then, that should at least help her feel better." The bartender obliged and Olose walked back over to her curled up form.

"Suse?" He asked, having remembered the name. She looked up, not registering that he shouldn't know it. "Here. Drink this." He gave her the water and she gulped it down before looking at him with big green eyes, her blonde hair a mess on her head. One eye was blackened. "Does this happen every time you're in town?" She nodded shyly. "Wanna leave?" He offered.

"Wherrrrre can I go?" She mumbled.

"With me." He suggested. "I'm forming a crew, gonna get a ship and hit the waves. Leave land behind. Want to be part of it?" She looked up at him.

"Why would you do that forrrr me?" She asked, confused. Olose sighed heavily.

"Because I'm responsible, Suse." He admitted. "I know I don't look the same, but I'm the guy who caused all this." Her eyes went wide as she recognised his voice and she thrust herself back against the corner in fear. "I won't hurt you Suse. Not again. I swear." He said gently. She looked up at him, shaking.  
"You prrrrrrromise?" She whimpered.

"Yeah, I promise. Last time I had to defend myself. I guess I never thought about the rest of your life." He offered her and hand and she took it. He pulled her to her feet. "I'm sorry."

"So, you have a ship?" She asked enthusiastically.

"Not as such. No." Olose admitted. "But I plan to get one!"  
"So you have money?" She inquired. Olose paused.

"Well, not _yet_." Olose told her and she slumped down on a chair.

"They'rrrre going to hurrrt me again!" She moaned. Olose sat down next to her.  
"No they won't." He said, putting his arm around her and trying to comfort her. "I'll make sure they won't." She looked up at him with a gaze, clearly comforted by the hug. Olose began to understand her. She was just a child. Her physical age seemed to be about nineteen, but mentally she was shattered, just a kid lost in the big world. She seemed to just be desperate for parents and somebody to care for her. "So what's your story?" Olose asked, trying to find out more about her. "What happened? How did you fall in with Abaj?"  
"Bandits raided my home when I was little." She answered sadly. "They were going to kill me when Ghoma burst out of the ground. I was so scared. I thought he was going to eat me. But instead he chased off the bandits and saved my life. He became a loyal friend to me, doing whatever I wanted and helping me to survive. I was only little, I didn't know what to do." Olose paused painfully at the thought that he had killed her only friend. "Abaj became obsessed with capturing him. Eventually he did, and I agreed to help in return for money and a warm bed. I was desperate, and at least I got to look after Ghoma that way."  
"And then I killed him and cut off your tail." Olose said bluntly. "I'm so sorry."

"After that I came here. And they've been making my life so difficult ever since." She whimpered. Olose held her tightly.

"Don't worry. I'll protect you now." He said warmly, trying to be like a parent to her. She smiled.

"Thank you." She whispered. Olose turned to the door as he heard it creak open. A one armed silhouette stood in the doorway. Olose sighed.

Nadia strode through the tavern confidently.

"OLOSE?" She bellowed, not caring about the stares she attracted.

"Here." Olose said, slightly embarrassed. Nadia saw him and sat down, slightly surprised by how much he had changed. She had forgotten, half expecting to see the old Olose sat there.

"What the hell are you wearing?" She inquired. Olose shrugged.

"Keeps most people away." He answered. "Arcadia-"He began, becoming much more serious.

"She was upset." Nadia told him. "But she was so thankful too. She swore to see you again. And gave you this." She held up a huge bag of gil. "Enough to buy your own ship." Olose forced a smile.

"Fantastic." He said unenthused. "Oh, this is Suse by the way." He gestured to the mithra. "Suse, that's Nadia." The two exchanged a welcoming glance. "She's our first crewmember."

"Great. What can she do?" Nadia asked. Olose paused.

"Urm, I don't know." He admitted. "But I'm sure we'll find out!" Olose sprang to his feet, trying to be as energetic as possible to avoid having to think about the actual events that were occurring to him. "Nadia, guard and stay with Suse. I'm going to get us a ship." He ran out of the tavern before either Nadia or Suse could say anything.

Olose was stood on the dusty deck of a ship. It was a small single sailed vessel, made out of old but tough dark brown wood, with a small cabin on the deck for the captain and two floors below for cargo and crew. Rubble was strewn across the deck, and the interior of the ship even had a collapsed rafter. But it was cheap, and had a certain charm to Olose.

It had been a few days since the meeting in the tavern, buying a ship had taken longer than Olose had planned. But now he stood there with Nadia and Suse, who both didn't look impressed. Nadia had taken to the irritating habit of calling him 'sir' all the time ever since he had explained how he would be captain of the new boat.

"You actually paid money for this, sir?" Nadia said in disbelief. Suse was silent.

"Oh come on. It's not that bad. What do you think?" He asked, sounding enthusiastic.

"Honestly sir? I think you got robbed." Nadia said bluntly.

"Oh come on, she's perfect. She sturdy, strong. A ship like this'll be with you 'til the day you die." He said confidently, quoting the salesman who had sold it to him.

"That's because it's a death-trap, sir." Nadia said bluntly and Suse giggled.

"It is not!" Olose protested. "Okay, look, just come and take a look around." He opened the hatchway to below decks and showed the two down.

"Sir, it's a pile of junk!" Nadia laughed.

"You've got look past what she is, and see what she represents!" Olose cried enthusiastically.

"What's that?" Suse asked, sounding slightly disgusted.

"Freedom!" Olose cried happily.

"No, I mean, what's that?" Suse said, pointing down at a pile of disgusting looking brown goo on the floor.

"Oh, I think something was living in here." Olose said casually. "Okay, so she needs a lick of pain here and there."

"You mean, like a sail?" Nadia said sceptically, dropping the 'sir' in her disbelief.

"Yes, okay, so we need a sail, and a bit of a tidy up. But once she's sea worthy, then we'll be free!" He cried happily.

"So she's not sea-worthy?" Nadia muttered.

"Not as such, no." Olose admitted. "Yet!" He added in a snap. "Now all we need is a name for her." Olose grinned.

"How about _Wreckage At The Bottom Of The Ocean_, sir?" Nadia suggested. Olose just glared at her.

"_Death-trap_ was a good one." Suse suggested softly, joining in the mocking.

"Oh, ha ha." Olose bitterly mumbled. "I thought of _Arcadia_, but we're trying to keep a low profile and leave our past lives."

"Quite a nice one though, sir." Nadia said sarcastically. "After all, I don't think Arcadia can swim."

"Quiet you." Grumbled Olose. "Okay. I've got it!"

"Ohh! What is it?" Suse cried excitingly.

"From now on, this ship will be known as the _Destiny_!" Olose announced.

"Just like it's our destiny to end up at the bottom of the ocean." Grumbled Nadia.

"Didn't I tell you to be quiet?" Snapped Olose.

**Author's Note: That's better. Back to normal length. I am aware that everybody knowing Olose lives ruins the drama, but Olose Sampson _did _die, from a certain point of view, so I didn't lie.**

**As a point, a lot of the dialogue on buying the ship is paraphrased from Firefly (I'm stealing so much of that show for this story it seems) when they brought their spaceship, mainly because I liked the humour it created, and it pretty much was exactly what I wanted to say. Another nice nod to one of my favourite TV shows (by nod I mean blatant rip off).**

**Oh, and Phabrizoe said that he wanted to see Sotobu again. Don't worry, he will be back! And keep in mind that Galka's reincarnate, and that Sotobu is an anagram of a certain other character from another story of mine…**


	13. Gathering

**Author's Note: This chapter includes two characters that are not mine. One is Phabrizoe, that belongs to…well….Phabrizoe. I didn't really have a personality for Phabrizoe, so made one up. He's a little grumpy, I hope you don't mind Phabrizoe! It's not meant to reflect you, but more make an interesting character to have on Olose's crew.**

**Another is Trevia, who was made by TheFrogKiller, and is in fact supposed to be an ancestor of his character Angel. Again, I had to develop her character, based around the fact she has been seen in a previous chapter. I hope you don't mind either!**

**Also, as Baschiki pointed out, I know there are plenty of spelling mistakes. And I have nobody to blame but myself for not proof reading. I just never bring myself to do it, an awful habit and I deserve to get criticised for it. But, I stand by my defiance of spellings words such as 'armour' with a 'u'. British, you see, so I spell the way I was taught there.**

**CHAPTER 13**

**GATHERING**

Olose was looking around curiously when Nadia marched in, sopping wet. She looked angry. Olose couldn't repress a laugh.

"What happened to you?" He giggled. She smirked.

"I was below deck on the _Destiny, _sir." She replied bluntly.

"What?" Olose instantly snapped, flinching. Nadia took her turn to laugh.

"It's alright sir. I think I bordered up the leak with Suse's help." She answered. "She's off drying her hair out, she's not as tall as I am." Nadia paused smirking. "You picked a real winner with that ship."

"She just needs a little love, that's all." Olose shrugged. "Besides, I'm here to meet with someone who said they were interested in joining our crew. Apparently he's an expert when it comes to ships and repairs and things. Should help a lot."

"So, where is he, sir?" Shrugged Nadia sceptically.

"I don't know. I can't see him anywhere." Olose answered, sounding slightly depressed.

"That's because I'm down here!" Snapped a voice. Olose and Nadia looked down at an angry looking tarutaru. "I swear, some people are just so disrespectful."

"Oh, sorry." Laughed Olose. "I didn't expect you to be-"

"To be a tarutaru? No! You wouldn't, would you! Nobody does!" He snapped.

"I think you upset him." Whispered Nadia.

"Sorry." Olose laughed nervously. "I'm honoured you accepted to work for us, though."

"I haven't accepted anything yet." The tarutaru reminded him. "Besides, I'm only interested because the only other employer's ship got eaten by a Sea Horror."

"Oh, how I love this 'get our own ship' idea." Sighed Nadia sarcastically.

"He didn't even notice it was gone!" The tarutaru cried.

"Look, I'm sorry I didn't see you there, okay?" Olose said, slightly irritated.

"Okay, it's fine." Sighed the tarutaru. "Phabrizoe, at your service. I guess I had better see just what junk heap you have."

"Junk heap?" Nadia sounded for a moment as if she was going to defend the poor ship. "Don't be too kind to it, it's far worse than that."

"Your words inspire me with confidence." Phabrizoe told Nadia. She smirked. The little tarutaru seemed to be dressed in the blue robes of a black mage, but they were dirty from heavy work and seemed encrusted in dust. His hair appeared to be green, which was fairly odd to Nadia, who hadn't seen many tarutarus before.

"I'll show you to the _Destiny _then." Olose said confidently.

The three stood in front of the _Destiny, _that had limped to one side slightly.

"You sure can pick them, you know." Phabrizoe pointed out. Intrepid

"Oh wow!" Came a cry from the deck, and Suse rushed down. "He's so cute!" She lifted him up into a hug. "Please tell me he's joining the crew!" She set down Phabrizoe and dark electricity crackled around his hands.

"Never do that again if you want to remain alive." Phabrizoe growled.

"Ah! Help!" Suse screamed as she ducked behind Olose. Olose laughed.

"No zapping the crew. First rule if you join." Olose pointed out. Phabrizoe turned his attention to the ship.

"What a piece of junk!" He remarked. "Getting this ship seaworthy, and keeping her that way, is going to be a challenge." He decided. "I'm in. I love challenges."

"Alright!" Olose cheered. "Introductions all round then, I guess. This is Nadia and Suse. I'm Captain Sampson."

"Pleased to meet you all." Phabrizoe said, feeling as if he was blatantly lying. "I'm Phabrizoe, black mage and workman. I know enough about ships to get this thing sailing again, and maintain it. But I'll need some money and equipment."

"Whatever you need." Smiled Olose.

"But I do have a few questions." He began. "I want to know about the crew. I mean, I seem to be working with an armless elvaan, a tailless mithra and-" He paused, looking at the way Olose was dressed. "I'm not even going to try there."

"Oh, I'm a werewolf." Olose said casually. Phabrizoe rose a tiny eyebrow.

"Right. Sure you are." He said, utterly unconvinced.

The three led Phabrizoe inside and sat him down in the captain's cabin (as that was the least wet from leaks) and explained who they were and their stories, Olose dodging having have revisit his. Phabrizoe sighed, deciding it was his turn.

"I suppose this is wear you ask me awkward questions." He assumed.

"Oh! I have one!" Suse cried excitingly, having cowered behind Olose for most of the time. "Why do you not speak like a tarrrrutarrrrru? You know, they speak funny."

"I decided it sounded stupid and stopped." Phabrizoe bluntly entered.

"You can do that?" Suse asked, surprised.  
"I'm beginning to think mithra keep their brains in their tail." Nadia grumbled beneath her breath.

"No." Phabrizoe laughed. "I was joking. Windurst has pulled out of the world, and I wanted to become a black mage, so I found myself having to learn in Bastok instead. They were keen to set up a magic school during construction so I learnt there. Picked up the speaking habits too."

"Glad of it." Nadia grumbled. "Drives me crazy when other races seem incapable of speaking normally."  
"Norrrrrrrrrrrrrrmally?" Suse inquired curiously.

"Exactly." Grumbled Nadia.  
"You should watch it, some people would think you're being racist." Phabrizoe warned.

"I can't help it if elvaans are naturally superior." Shrugged Nadia. Olose rolled his eyes.

"We still have a lot to do." Olose decided to change the subject. "We need to get the ship seaworthy, and we need to construct an inescapable brig for…urm…me." He paused, noticing the strange glances he got. "When it's a full moon." He added to explain. "We need more crew as well."

"What do you need exactly?" Phabrizoe asked. "We have a captain, a first mate, I can keep the ship in order, and Suse does-" He paused. "I'm sure she does something, what else do we need?"

"Muscle, for starters." Olose explained. "I mean, we need to be transporting a lot on and off of ship, not to mention dealing with pirates and mercenaries and any monsters we encounter."

"I'm plenty strong enough!" Nadia sounded offended.

"You only have one arm!" Olose pointed out. "It's going to make hauling crates around difficult. Phabrizoe is a tarutaru and Suse doesn't exactly look like the strong type." Suse wrapped her arms around herself subconsciously. Her body actually looked malnourished due to a lack of food she had found surviving on her own, and she didn't look like she had much muscle power. "And I'm only one man, I can't do it all myself."

"What about a skipper? We need somebody who can actually drive the boat." Phabrizoe suggested.

"I can handle it. I read a book all about boats. Well, it had boats in it. Well, a boat. A picture of a boat, actually." Olose paused. "I can handle it."

"We'rrrre doomed." Suse moaned.

"I'll recruit the new crew." Olose stated. "You just make sure you get the ship seaworthy before it sinks." He added in a grumble. Phabrizoe saluted.

"Anything you say, Captain!" He cried with fake enthusiasm.

"Right. I'll get to looking around town then." Olose sighed.

Olose was in the tavern once more, the best place for finding employees, or so he had discovered. He had pinned a message up on the notice board there asking for anybody who wanted to work to come and find him, and now he was hoping for success.

"You Captain Sampson?" Came a sharp female voice from behind. Olose spun around to face his addresser. He jumped in shock. He thought the scent was familiar.

"Last time I checked." He stuttered, slightly surprised by the mithra stood before him. Her dark brown eyes probed him an familiar way, her brown hair tied back tightly in a ponytail.

"You seem shocked." She remarked. "So it's not coincidence. The name."  
"I'll say. Last time we met you tried to kill me. Here to finish the job?" He asked, subconsciously preparing to fight.

"No. Last time I was swung out of a window by my tail. I saw that as a defeat. My employerrrr believes Olose Sampson is dead, and would not employ me were he still alive due to my previous failurrrre, I have no desirrrrre to kill you." Explained the mithra assassin that had last attacked Olose in his home, back in his past life. "I do not know how you became another person, and I do not care." She explained. "What pay are you offering?"

"10 of the job fee." Olose shot. "If maintenance on the ship is large and the job pays low, it may be lessened, and vice versa, if the ship is in good shape and the job pays well, it may be risen."

"Ten perrrrrcent is high for the crew of a ship." The mithra remarked.

"_Destiny's _got a small crew." Olose answered. "You may want to check her out first though, she's-"

"I have seen the _Destiny _before I came to speak with you." The mithra reassured. "I would not accept this job if I did not like the ship."

"Well then, welcome aboard. I must say, you're the first person who likes the ship." Olose smiled.

"I like a boat with character." The assassin shot back.

"I'm Olose Sampson, as you know." He extended a hand.

"Trevia Heart." Trevia shook it. "You'rrrrre Captain to me, as long as you'rrrrrre paying me. Once you stop, then you shall become Olose."

"Glad to see you live up to the surname of 'Heart'." Olose grumbled. "You'll get to meet the crew soon. There's an elvaan woman, only got one arm but her attitude more than makes up for it. Phabrizoe is a little tarutaru, but he seems to be a dammed powerful black mage _and _he knows plenty about ships. Suse is a little fragile, so be nice to her. She doesn't do much, but I took her in because the streets didn't seem too safe. She's a tailless mithra, but don't be crew."

"Ah, yes. I know her. I've seen her around. Some dishonourable mithra like to beat her up for her injury." Trevia explained. "It is a shame that somebody would dare to that to such an innocent girl."

"Oh, that was me." Olose laughed. "She was trying to kill me at the time."

"Coincidence follows you, Captain." Trevia stated quite cryptically. "That could be a good or a bad omen. Still, it is painful to see such a young mithra being put through pain by others of my kind."  
"And you don't help when you see this?" Olose inquired.

"She is homeless, there is no money to be rrrrrewards. Besides, I like to think people should be strrrrrrong enough to fight their own battles." Trevia paused. "Do you know, you'rrrrrre the only person to have ever escaped me?"

"I'm honoured." Olose mumbled.  
"That is some rrrreal strrrrrength." Trevia seemed to admire him. "Yet they call it a curse. I wonderrrrr why."

"I don't." Olose paused painfully, remembering Talia. Twice he had lost the woman he loved, for different reasons. It was even worse with Arcadia. She was still alive but he couldn't go back.

"It's a painful story." Olose sighed.

"Then there is no need to tell it." Trevia answered. "You are my employerrrrr. I have no desirrre to upset you."

"Glad to hear it." Olose nodded, trying to regain his confidence. "Guess I had better introduce you to the crew properly then."

Olose introduced Trevia to the crew quickly, and Trevia seemed to greet them all in the same way. Nadia seemed to be mildly impressed by Trevia's formal attitude, Phabrizoe seemed grumpy because it interrupted his repairs and Suse seemed as frightened as she always did. Trevia then, in a business like manner, went about moving her items on board of the ship and preparing for its departure.

Phabrizoe in the meantime had managed to patch up the ship, drain the water that had leaked within and hoist a new sail. Olose was impressed. It certainly looked like they were going to be equipped to set sail soon. Phabrizoe wasn't certain he had joined the right crew, but he had a feeling if nothing else that adventure was on the horizon and he was looking forward to some excitement.

Olose knew they would be departing soon and had returned to the bar in search of any final crew members. He sat down at the bar and ordered a drink for effect. He had a feeling nobody else was going to join his small crew, and that they were pretty much ready to set sail.

He swirled the drink around, feeling sad. The moment that ship departed, his entire life would be set behind him. He's be the new Captain Olose Sampson, not Olose Sampson the bodyguard. Not the Olose Sampson who loved Arcadia and never told her. He sighed with frustration. Would it be that bad to back one last time? Would it be that bad to tell her?

He sighed. Yes, it would. He had made a decision to stay dead. At least she knew he was alive. As long as she knew, that's all that mattered.

He wondered back to the ship, having grabbed a log book on the way to keep account of what they were going to do while at sea. He was still lacking a vital component; a job, but once he got one he knew the ship and crew would be underway, for better or worse.

And his old life would be firmly left behind.


	14. Delivery

**Author's Note: I remembered I should mention this. Since Olose is a werewolf (which rarely actually comes up, he's only transformed once in the story!) and I took much from many werewolf myths, some people might be wondering where the whole 'regenerating as another person' idea came from. It's certainly not werewolf myth. It was in fact stolen from a completely different idea: Doctor Who. In the original FFXI Chronicles I based Olose slightly off the behaviour of the new Doctor in Doctor Who, and since then the idea evolved when I wanted Olose to return as a surprise, and so I stole the idea that he 'regenerated' in another form, just like the Doctor does in Doctor Who (which is, of course, an excuse to change actors every so often). It actually became a vital piece of the story with Olose switching lives, but I forgot to explain it. So there you are.**

**Now that I've established myself as a geek with references to Doctor Who, I need to explain something else. The chapters on the ship begin with 'Ship Logs' referring to what the crew are doing. I may be a geek but, and I cannot stress this enough, this is _NOT _a homage to Star Trek (oh, how I loathe that show). I figured they could be mistaken as such. Instead, it came from the idea I wanted people to get an idea about Olose in first person, but he doesn't strike me as the type who would keep a diary, and I didn't want to slip into first person for no reason, so used ship logs. On the bright side, they get numbered for each mission, so you get an idea of how many Olose has been on and how much time passes between these chapters on the boat as the idea is these chapters are more like episodes as Olose and his crew embark on new individual adventures.**

**I also tried to focus this chapter on giving Nadia some characterisation so she was beyond 'tough girl' in the character ranks. Means most other characters play second fiddle. I hope it works alright and doesn't read like I'm intentionally ignoring them.**

**CHAPTER 14**

**DELIVERY**

_Ship's Log 1: We've left Seblina and actually have a job to get done. We're taking supplies to aid the construction of a yet unnamed port town. Phabrizoe seems to be a capable navigator, so with the map supplied we should be able to get there soon enough. Trevia was useful when loading the supplies, as was Nadia, but I have a feeling her stubbornness and habit to refuse help will get her killed. Suse in the meantime is thrilled to discover she gets to sleep in a hammock, being all that we had room to hang up beneath deck. Although she was a little shy due to the fact she has to sleep in the same 'room' as the males. It's no secret, she can be particularly childish._

_Should be easy sailing to the port. The ship's creaking uneasily, which doesn't inspire me with confidence, and Phabrizoe is busy with navigation and so unable to patch it up. On the bright side, I think I'm getting the hang of this sailing thing._

Olose had no idea what he was doing. He swung the wheel, feeling the ship beginning to react.

"Urm, we are going the right way, right?" Olose asked Phabrizoe uneasily.

"Yes, yes." Phabrizoe answered, wielding a large and clunky map that Olose could have easily wrapped the tiny tarutaru up in. "Turn for degrees starboard." Olose looked at him blankly. "Oh, I can see this is going to be a fun trip." Phabrizoe grumbled to himself.

Suse swung on the hammock with a grin on her face while Trevia attempted to ignore her and Nadia just sighed to herself. Trevia was busy sharpening her katana blade, and Nadia was reading a book. She eventually sighed in frustration and put it down.  
"Just what are we supposed to do?" She groaned. "We're on this ship, but we don't actually have anything to do while we're sailing!"  
"Play on the hammocks!" Suse suggested with a grin on her face as she swung around. The rope connected it snapped and she landed with a thump. "Ow!" She whined, rolling around on the floor clutching her own back. Nadia sighed and did her best to ignore her.

"What do you reckon we should do, Trevia?" Nadia asked, hoping to get Trevia speaking.

"Whatever the Captain asks." She answered obediently. "As long as I get-"

"-Yeah, yeah, we know, as long as you get paid." Sighed Nadia. "Screw this. I'm going up on deck."

Nadia emerged, watching the sea crash against the ship as it sailed uneasily across the water. Olose was at the wheel, but looked confused, and seemed to constantly be glancing to Phabrizoe for advice. It didn't inspire her with confidence to say the least. She leant on the edge of the ship awkwardly, balanced on her one arm. She sighed heavily, feeling quite down. She tried to ponder how she had ended up where she was now. As much as she had professed to hate it, she was happy in the elvaan army, life was easy there. Once she lost her arm everything went down hill. And then, somehow, she had ended up on the boat, and she wasn't sure if it was a good thing. She actually felt a little inferior, Trevia replaced whatever job she could have done, Phabrizoe was the navigator and Olose was the captain. Suse had even replaced her as Olose's friend he had taken on board. She was without use or purpose. Ever since she lost her arm.

She chuckled to herself looking around the ship. It was truly a ship of coincidence. Two of the crew members had attempted to kill Olose, and had ended up together working for him. She looked over to him as he bolted onto the stairs leading down from the ship's wheel.

"Land ho!" He cried excitedly. Nadia went to turn around to look.

"Hands on the wheel, Olose!" Snapped Phabrizoe and Nadia spun back around as Olose lunged, grabbing the wheel to keep the ship steady.

"Sorry." He laughed nervously. "Looks like we should be docking soon. Get Trevia to prepare the anchor!"  
"I can do it!" Nadia snapped.

"You only have one arm!" Olose pointed out.

"Dammit! I know!" Nadia cried, struggling to get ready to drop the anchor.

Trevia walked up on deck.

"I hearrrrd shouting." She commented. "Docking then, are we?"

"The docks aren't fully completed." Olose informed her. "We're going to drop the anchor here and lower the rowing boat into the ocean, take that ashore with the supplies. So give Nadia a hand with getting that anchor in the water." He paused. Phabrizoe grumbled something about not being certain of the condition of the rowing boat. "SUSE!" Olose suddenly bellowed. The little mithra popped her head onto the deck.

"Yeah?" She asked innocently.

"Hoist the sail!" He ordered. She looked a bit confused, having been told how to do it, but never having tried. "Nadia, give her a hand!" Nadia dropped the anchor, frustrated that she couldn't handle it in one arm alone, and helped Suse with the sail.

The _Destiny _came to a halt, the mighty iron anchor safely securing the ship.

"Now to get to shore." Phabrizoe grumbled.

"Right." Olose stated. "Nadia, your with me. The rest of you stay on the ship."

"Awwww, no way." Sighed Suse.

"No choice." Olose shrugged. "The rowing boat can only take two with the cargo on it, and that's at a push. And Nadia's my first mate, so she's coming along."

"Because I'll be able to row in circles." Nadia grumbled.

"You're my first mate, Nadia, so you're the one that comes with me when nobody else can." Olose stated. "Now let's get the cargo loaded and get to shore. The sooner we deliver it, the sooner they pay us for it."

"This is the parrrrt of the job I like." Trevia allowed herself to break her professionalism for a grin.  
"Hey, we don't get the cash 'til we're back in Seblina, remember." Olose warned. "We need to deliver the money to the guy who gave us the job, then we get our cut. So no taking it until we're back." He paused. "Alright, let's get to work!"

Nadia seemed unusually distant to Olose as he rowed the small boat towards Seblina, now loaded with barrels of construction supplies. The little rowing boat creaked uneasily, not unlike the _Destiny._

"What's wrong?" Olose asked casually as the oars splashed against the waves, more to draw attention away from his erratic rowing and the bad feeling he was getting water was gathering in the tiny boat.

"Nothing." She sighed. "I just feel a little useless."

"You're the first mate." Olose said bluntly. "Of course you're useful!"  
"It's just, Norg died, and I can't help thinking if he was still around he'd be so disappointed in us." Nadia muttered.

"I know on the surface it looks like we ran away." Olose sighed. "And I know that it seems cowardly. But remember, I'm doing this to protect everybody I knew back in my old life. If Abaj found-"

"Stoppit." Nadia stated firmly. "Who are you trying to convince? Me or you?" Olose fell silent. "We didn't even give him a funeral!" She protested.

"I was busy getting my face ripped off!" Olose protested. He sighed. "Look, Norg was a good friend. I'll make sure we do something to remember him, okay? As soon as this job is over, we'll hold our own memorial service." Nadia sighed.

"Thank you." She said in a tone that was unusually soft for her.

The boat soon arrived by the extended pier, still under construction. Olose fiddled for a bit, trying to tie the rope effectively to the stump. Nadia sighed, taking over and tying it effectively.

"See, I can even do that with one arm." She taunted. Olose sighed, beginning to unload the barrels. "Weren't you ever in the ranger scouts or anything?"

"No, I grew up in-" Olose paused. "No." He stated, forcing himself to not remember the events that occurred back in his home village. Nadia chuckled. Olose wobbled a little on the boat, dumping the barrels on the half built pier.

"So, where is everyone?" She asked, surveying the empty worksite of a port.

"Good question." Olose answered, clambering up onto the pier having moved the last barrel. "Well, what are you waiting for? Let's go find them!"

"This isn't going to end well, is it?" Nadia grumbled.

"Well, you never know. They might be in trouble. Maybe we'll get a reward." Olose paused. "Man, Trevia is going to be so angry if we get money and she doesn't."

"I'm in!" Nadia cried enthusiastically and Olose chuckled, walking towards the poorly constructed shacks that housed the workmen.

Olose knocked on the wooden door and heard nothing.

"Our first job can't even go simply, can it?" Olose sighed. Nadia managed a half hearted grin. "Shall I break the door down?"

"Well, if somebody's around, they might not appreciate it." Nadia was worried. She was being the voice of reason.

"They're builders. They're supposed to rebuild things." Shrugged Olose.

"No smashing things!" Nadia snapped. "Sir." She added afterwards with a wry smile. "We just need to find what's going on here."

"They're probably having a picnic or something." Olose suggested. Nadia rolled her eyes. A rumble brought the two of them back to attention. "I think we may be on to something." Olose muttered, drawing his sword. Nadia swung hers out, a single handed rapier to accommodate for her handicap. There was a roar and they spotted something approaching them. It was big .Very big.

"It's an ogre!" Nadia yelled. "A giant!" Olose surveyed the area, and saw that one of the shacks had been smashed. Before he had assumed it was under construction, but now he could see that it had been smashed to pieces. The giant roared, swinging about a gigantic object in its hands. "That's a big club." Nadia muttered blankly.

"That's no club. That's a bloody tree!" Olose cried in fear, before reassuring himself to try and appear as brave as possible. "Right. This is okay. It's only a gigantic monster. We can deal with it." The giant swung down the tree, hitting Olose and sending him flying across the air. Nadia didn't see where he landed, but it seemed it was a long way away.

Nadia adjusted her grin on her sword as the giant roared. It was a sickly faded green colour, and the bones of its ribs stuck out in an ugly way. It had yellow, soulless eyes, and jagged broken teeth, and Nadia winced at its foul breath as it roared at her.

"I'm assuming we can't just talk about this?" She said sceptically. The giant roared again. "No? Damn." The giant swung and Nadia flung herself to the floor (she actually emitted a slight shriek, and was very glad nobody was around to find out). It lifted up the gigantic tree, ready to bring it down and smash her relatively little form. Nadia dove forwards and drove her sword into the leg of the giant. The giant looked down at her curiously, lowering the tree, holding it one hand, and scooping her up in another. It was totally unaffected by its wound, and now held Nadia curiously, adjusting her grip so that it held her by her foot. She dangled helplessly upside down. It lifted her up as if it was going to drop her into its mouth. Nadia squeezed her eyes shut in fear.

Olose appeared suddenly _on _the creature's head, having run up behind it. The creature reacted in shock as he drove his sword down into its skull. The creature cried in pain, letting go of Nadia. She fell and Olose dove from its head, grabbing her and spinning around so that he landed spine first against the ground, protecting her from the fall as she ended up using him as a cushion. The giant roared as Nadia stumbled to her feet, still hurt from the fall and badly giddy. Olose groaned as his body began to regenerate the wounds. Nadia looked at her blade, still lodged in the giant's leg.

"This isn't going to end well." She grumbled. The giant roared at her, and she stumbled back. She turned and ran to the wreckage of the shack, grabbing a fractured piece of wood and hurling it at the monster. It bounced off it's hide and it continued to march towards her.

Nadia grumbled. If she had a bow, she would be in better stead. Olose sprang up behind it, running to the giant's tree trunk like legs and grabbed Nadia's sword. He hurled it to Nadia, who skilfully caught it out of the air in her one hand. The creature continued to amble towards her.

"We're gonna need more than swords for this one." Olose cried above the sound of the giant marching.

"Any ideas, sir?" Nadia cried back. The creature roared powerfully.

"I might!" Olose snapped. His face suddenly lit up. "The containers! That's it! Fantastic!"  
"What?" Nadia screamed incuriously.

"The containers, one contains an explosive powder for creating a clearing!" He explained enthusiastically. "Distract it!" Olose shot towards the containers. Nadia looked at her sword, shaking with fear.

"Urm, how?" She asked weakly. The creature swung its club down, and she dove to the side, causing the mighty tree to crash against the ground with a rumble. Nadia scrambled away in a panic, trying to keep her cool, but panic beginning to take over.

Olose ran to the barrels as quickly as possible, also panicking, which was quite illogical, since he was immortal. However, he didn't want to find out if even he could regenerate after being squished by a tree, so worked quickly. He saw the giant lumbering towards him, totally ignoring Nadia, and still with Olose's sword stuck in its head. Nadia slashed at its legs, but it totally ignored her. Olose looked up as it approached him, and he gulped, subconsciously reaching for his sword that wasn't there. It roared, taking a step onto the pier, which collapsed and it disappeared into the water. The end Olose was on fractured, but stayed exactly where it had to be. Olose gripped the explosive barrel and ran along the remains of the pier, reaching dry land just as the giant burst out of the water behind him. Roaring.

"Distract it, dammit!" Olose snapped.

"I can't!" Nadia yelled back. The giant roared just as an explosion echoed across the air and something hit the monster with such force it fell forwards, crashing down before Nadia. Olose smiled as he saw the crew left on the _Destiny _cheering with glee, and the cannon smoking. Olose let himself catch a breath before noticing that the giant was still alive.

"Dammit!" Olose cried. "Lure it towards the cliff face!" He pointed towards a cliff overlooking the small construction site. Nadia nodded, lunging forwards and trying to pull the sword lodged in the creature's head out with her arm, almost dropping her own sword. She managed to twist the blade, making the creature squeal as it sprang to its feet again, roaring.

The crew of the _Destiny _were hurriedly preparing another cannonball, but Nadia knew it would take too long.

"This way!" She called, luring the creature after her. It began to stamp after her and she began to run. Olose scaled the cliff face quickly, leaping from rock to rock like a hyperactive frog. He reached the top, setting down the explosives. He started looking around frantically for a way to light it. The creature reached the base of the cliff, and Nadia ran, diving into the water for safety. It began to attempt to climb up the slope, ripping at the rocks to get to Olose. Olose started frantically striking two pieces of wood together, desperate to light the explosive. The giant reached the peak just as Olose managed it, dropping the flame into the explosive and causing the barrel to explode, sending Olose flying (who crashed into the water safely) and the giant reeling back as a massive landslide crushed it.

There was a moment of silence before both Olose and Nadia burst out of the water, scrambling back onto dry land.

"YEEHAH!" Olose cried. Nadia sighed in relief. "We got it!" He hugged her, swinging her around. She landed uneasily, stumbling a little from wounds and shock.

"Very impressive, sir." She managed to say dryly. They suddenly saw figures beginning to emerge from a cave in the rocks opposite the fallen cliff face.

"You defeated it!" Gasped somebody. "You've saved the town!" They cheered. Olose and Nadia smiled.

"You know, if we get a reward, we now technically owe it to the whole crew because they helped to take it out." Olose whispered to Nadia.

"Damn." She whispered back.

"We've been hiding in those caves since that monster showed up!" An elderly hume explained. "We've been unable to do anything, but the caves were safe at least. We'd of been trapped there forever, were it not for you."

"Anything to help." Olose smiled. "I'm Captain Sampson, and those were your explosives. Sorry about that." The old man smiled.

"No problem. I'm sure you can be forgiven." He told Olose. "The rest of our supplies are still okay?"  
"On the shattered pier, but in one piece. We even delivered them." Olose beamed.

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" The old man was on the verge of ranting. "This calls for a celebration! And a reward!" Both Olose and Nadia grinned from ear to ear. "A reward worthy of the savoir of the town! Say, this town is unnamed. Why don't you name it?" Nadia and Olose were slightly taken back by this offer. They had expected money. But quickly the same idea crossed their minds.

"I think we should name it in honour of a fallen friend of ours." Olose explained. "He was a good man, and we never even managed to attend his funeral."

"If he has your respect, then he must be a worthy man indeed." The old man said to Olose. "So, tell me, what was his name?" Olose looked to Nadia, allowing her to say it.

"Norg." She explained.

"Very well. Henceforth, this town shall be known as Norg!" The old man announced. Nadia and Olose smiled to each other. "And we shall celebrate! Come! Bring your crew to dry land! We will not allow you to leave without a celebration for what you have done for us!"

"What do you have to celebrate with?" Olose asked sceptically. "This is little more than a worksite."

"We need enjoyment." Explained the old man happily, seeming to buck up. "So we brought plenty of beer with us when we came here." He gestured to a hut that was still standing. "Come on, for you are now the heroes of Norg. Enjoy your party!"

Nadia and Olose grinned. Their first job had been eventful, but successful. They had finally honoured Norg's death. They were having a party. And best of all, they were going to get paid.


	15. Salvage

**IMPORTANT Author's Note: Well, important if you're reading this when it was posted. I cannot update anymore until Friday. I'm sorry, but I'm not in the city and not near a computer. I have to go across the country to watch my brother graduate from university (which, as you can imagine, I'm not looking forward too, it sounds very boring). I take great pride in the fact I post a chapter once a day, usually without fail, except when I stopped writing stories in the middle of my exams, and it's a shame I have to stop and utterly beyond my control. Of course, somebody smart may point out 'writing a chapter a day is what makes them so sucky because you don't have time to check them properly'. Well, that person probably would have a very good point, but I'm always so eager to continue the story I do it anyway. But I can't now. I might get back on Thursday, meaning I can resume updates on Friday, or it might not be until Friday I get back, at which point I'll have to delay updates until Saturday probably. Sorry about that. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**CHAPTER 15**

**SALVAGE**

_Ship's Log 4: We've been hired for a fairly interesting sounding salvage op (ha, I'm actually beginning to sound like a captain). Apparently an elvaan warship was attacked and left deserted in the waters, the life boats haven't left but nobody seems to be alive on board. It's run aground not far from Seblina, and is being kept very quiet by local merchants. They want a ship to go out, salvage any equipment on the ship and give it to them so that they get quality merchandise cheap to sell on. The pay is surprisingly high despite this, that equipment must be worth something! Of course, this is strictly illegal salvage, so we need to be careful. If the authorities get wind of the condition of the damaged ship, then we could be caught and we're in severe trouble if that happens._

_I mention jobs like this in the ship's log, so I wonder who I'm writing for. It's not to keep track of our tasks, my memory keeps track of that easily. And it's not for port officials clearly. So I've decided. Arcadia, this is for you. When we meet again, these logs will be able to tell you everything that happened to me._

The _Destiny _tore across the waves, bobbing up and down as Olose stood at the wheel, handling the ship with considerably increased skill. He had a grim look on his face, reflecting the thoughts of his crew.

"So, if this ship has no crew left, what happened to them?" It was Suse who voiced this thought, not figuring out that every crew member was currently considering it.  
"Perhaps if they ran aground, they jumped the ship and fled?" Nadia suggested, despite knowing that it wasn't true.

"The life boats were said to still be on board." Phabrizoe pointed out. "Can't have."

"It seems to me that this question is the very rrrrreason we werrrre sent." Trevia voiced. "Considerrrrr, if somebody found the ship and managed to investigate it enough to know these details, why did they not take the goods on boarrrrd?"

"Maybe they were being nice!" Suse beamed. Trevia didn't dignify her with a response.

"You think we've been sent because we're the only ones gullible enough to go, Trevia?" Nadia asked. Trevia shrugged.

"I'm not one to make judgements on the Captain's decisions. The money _is _good, and the job should be simple. But it should be too simple, and that is the prrrroblem. Why are we the ones doing it instead of the crew that found it in the firrrrst place?" Trevia explained her concerns, and the others listened carefully.

"This salvage is strictly illegal." Phabrizoe pointed out. "They probably didn't want to risk getting caught." Suse felt her stomach knot at the thought she was going to get into trouble.

"Well, I don't want to get told off!" She yelped.

"You won't get told off." Phabrizoe groaned. "We'll be arrested. If we're lucky, we'll be thrown in jail to rot."

"And if we're unlucky?" Nadia asked, trying to hide her concern.

"We'll be hung as pirates." Phabrizoe stated. Suse let out a sob of panic, and Nadia shifted awkwardly on her feet. Trevia didn't move, or even blink. Clearly she wasn't paid to react.

"B-but we'll be fine, right?" Suse begged. "Right?" The others remained silent. "I mean, Olose is immortal right? So there's nothing they can do to us?"  
"I hate to say it but she has a point." Nadia grumbled. "Olose _is _immortal, if we have to fight our way out, we can."

"They'll sink the ship." Phabrizoe explained. "We won't get far without a ship, and stealing a military vessel will be seen as an act of war. I don't think even Olose could survive going to war with a nation alone."

"Ahhhh!" Suse let out a slight scream. Phabrizoe sighed. He was only pointed out what he felt they needed to know.

It was late afternoon when Olose caught a glimpse of the huge elvaan battleship sat in the distance. It was huge, with a double deck of cannons and covered in a spectacular looking gold trim. It had three sets of sails, gigantic ones that still flickered in the wind despite the fact it had run aground on some jagged looking rocks. The front had dipped into the water, but apparently the rocks were so shallow it was still kept above the waves. It looked mighty, truly inspiring, and yet there wasn't a soul on board.

"Guys!" Olose cried. "Would you look at that!" The entire crew turned to look at the gigantic vessel that came close to dwarfing the _Destiny _as it approached.

"Watch for those rocks, Captain!" Phabrizoe warned.

"That ship must be capable of carrying nearly two hundred elvaans." Nadia gasped. "Who could have done this?"

"Or what." Trevia stated coldly. Olose sniggered to himself bizarrely. He could tell by her scent that even Trevia had become extremely frightened. Of course, she hid it under a steely gaze, unlike Suse, who was literally in tears of fear on the deck. Nadia paced uncomfortably and Phabrizoe seemed to be in deep thought.

"We're getting closer." Olose stated. "Prepare the anchor, we're going to board her by rowing boat."

The anchor was lowered, the sails raised and the boat lowered. Olose turned to his crew.

"Somebody needs to stay here with the ship." He stated.

"Me! Pick me!" Suse screamed.  
"I'll do it." Nadia volunteered.

"I'm willing to stay behind." Phabrizoe said casually.

"I will stay here." Trevia stated. Olose rolled his eyes.

"Phabz, you're with the ship, since you're the most experienced." Olose decided, having realised none of his crew wanted to board the mysteriously wrecked vessel.

"Oh no!" Sobbed Suse.

"Oh, stop complaining." Snapped Nadia.

"Right. Everybody but Phabz on the boat." Olose climbed down to the rowing boat, now reinforced and much stronger. The others boarded it, and it wasn't long before they were rowing towards the mighty elvaan warship.

As they got closer they began to survey the damage much more closely. Olose observed how what he had once thought was another hole for a cannon was a gigantic hole ripped near the top of the ship's main body, one that led right through to the other side. Furthermore, the main cabin, a large ornate one with a huge glass window at the back, had collapsed as if put under a massive weight. A long line was cracked down the front of the ship, as if something long and hard had slammed against it. Trevia noticeably shivered.

"Captain, I advise we rrrrreturn." She stated.

"What? Why?" Olose asked. "I mean, whatever did this is long gone, and-"

"Please. Captain. I rrrrreally think we should go back." Her voice was cracking with fear, and her tail had frozen, an evident sign she was petrified.

"What's wrong? Is the little girl scared?" Nadia mocked. Suse looked up, for a moment thinking Nadia was talking about her.

"Be silent." Trevia snapped. "I know what did this. I believe this ship fell victim to a sea horror. I have no desire to become a victim of one. They say you cannot fight them. They say they consume you whole, keeping you alive as they leech off the liquids in yourrrrr body. They say that it can extend yourrrrr life, keeping you forrrrrrever rrrrrrrotting in theirrrrrr body as everrrrrry last drrrrrrop of life is squeezed from you. Yourrrrr skin drrrrries up, yourrrrrr orrrrrrgans pack up slowly, until just yourrrrr brrrrrrain in an encrusted skeleton is kept beating, the juices slowly being sucked from it as yourrrrr mind dies." Trevia paused for effect, trying to spook Olose. "They say-" She was cut off as Suse threw up over the side.

"Tone it down a bit, would you?" Olose requested. "Who says that anyway? Who could possibly know the digestive process of a sea horror without being digested? I think we can chalk those stories up to drunken sailors trying to sound spooky." Trevia shrunk back, embarrassed.

"I would still prefer not to engage one." She said, trying to hide the fact that her face had turned red.

"I guess everybody's afraid of something." Nadia shrugged. Suse wiped off her mouth and pulled herself back.

"Ew! Never tell a story like that again! Ever!" She whined. Trevia sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Look. I'm sure that even if a sea horror did attack then it's long gone." Olose decided. "We'll be perfectly safe." The rowing boat reached the mighty warship and Olose began to climb the rigging. "Trevia, if you're that scared, I'm sure us grown ups can handle it and you can head back to the ship and swap with Phabrizoe." Trevia angrily grabbed the rigging of the ship and began to climb.

"I'll be fine!" She snapped. "Rrrrrreally, Captain, you can be a bit disrrrrrrespectful." Trevia felt it was unprofessional to express such opinions, but she was both afraid and agitated.

"I know Trevia, but it's the best way to get this operation moving. We're here now. We've taken the job. Do you want the reputation as the crew who went running because we got scared on a job?" Olose asked.

"You have a point, Captain." Trevia grumbled. "I'm sorrrry. I got frrrrightened, as much as I hate to admit it. Stories and this atmosphere of death can have a strange effect on the mind."

"No need to overdo it, apology accepted." Olose told her.

"What about me?" Suse asked with fake enthusiasm. "Can I go back on the ship and swap with Phabrizoe?"  
"No. Now come on!" The crew climbed the rigging, Suse struggling due to her distinct lack of strength and Nadia struggling due to her lack in having both arms, but they soon made the deck. A large hole sat in the middle of it, leading down deep below the ship. Olose peered down the hole. It had ripped right through the ship to the waters below. They could see the ocean flooding the lower decks, and yet the ship remained afloat. "Odd." Olose remarked.

Trevia peered down, feeling a chill run down her spine and up her tail. It twitched nervously. Suse came up beside her, being much shorter than the particularly tall mithra, and looked up at her for reinsurance.

"It's okay, isn't it?" Suse asked in a panic.

"Why is the ship afloat if the lowerrrrr decks are flooded?" Trevia asked, ignoring Suse. She thought she saw something move in the water below. Her eyes went wide. "The sea horror! It set a trrrrrap! It set a god dammed trrrrrap!" The ship began to shake and Olose ran to Trevia.

"What are you talking about?" He snapped.

"The sea horror! It's holding the ship afloat! Waiting for prrrrrey like us to come along!" Trevia explained as massive tentacles began to snake through the holes in the ship, one coming up to the deck. The mighty beast's head began to pull itself up to the main cabin, crushing it further as it sat there, its jaw snapping and its podgy eyes staring at them.

"Sweet Altana!" Olose gasped. Nadia was frozen in fear. Suse broke down into tears on the deck. Trevia drew her weapons, as did Olose. "I've heard of sea horror's, they aren't this big!" Olose protested.

"Sir, I'm looking at some fairly compelling evidence that says they are." Nadia managed to say, drawing her own sword.

"It's overgrown." Trevia calmly stated, snapping into her assassin mode. "It's beyond any normal sea horror."

"Get everybody out of here." Olose ordered as the tentacle began to squirm. "It's taking its time. It knows we can't escape. It gives you guys time to get out of here."

"What are you going to do?" Nadia asked.

"Just get to safe distance! It's going to have a hard time killing me, that it can be sure of." Olose spun his sword.

"Captain, we will not leave you to die." Trevia stated fiercely.

"Who's dieing?" Olose watched as the tentacle moved, slamming down at him. He dove aside. "Go! Now! That's an order!"

"Let's move!" Trevia ordered, obeying Olose instantly.

"I can't!" Sobbed Suse with fear. Trevia grabbed her and jumped to the rowing boat.

"Olose! I'm not leaving you!" Nadia screamed. "Come on!" Olose sighed, running at Nadia and kicking her overboard, causing her to splash down by the rowing boat. He turned back to face the sea horror, hearing Nadia cursing below.

It roared, as it had a habit of doing. The tentacle snaked for Olose, but he stabbed it, sending it back for a moment. The entire ship shuddered and lifted into the air as the sea horror hauled it towards its body. Olose lost his footing and fell.

The bow of the ship jutted into the air as the sea horror pulled the stern downwards towards its mouth. The tentacle quickly snapped around Olose and lifted him up. He felt it crushing his bones and grunted in pain. It brought him in towards the mouth of the beast, and Olose could tell that he couldn't escape the grip.

"I sure hope Trevia's wrong about that digestion thing." He muttered as the sea horror's beak snapped at him. He gulped.

He had a way out, but he couldn't predict the results. Not out on the water.

"Well pal, you've made a mistake." He began, deciding it was his only shot. "You picked a fight with me. Me on a special day. You see, I wanted this job to go quickly, I'm pushed for time today. Evening beckons and the full moon is rising in the sky. I can resist the transformation until it's fully in the air, but if I let go of that resistance-" Olose simply relaxed the conscious part of his mind that had been stopping his transformation. He had learnt years ago to hold it off, until the moon was at its strongest, at which point it was useless to resist. This time he let it go beforehand, and was unable to even finish his sentence. "YEEEEEEEEARGH!" He screamed, his body mutating and bursting with power as it became that of a half-wolf, half-man monster. He roared, thrusting outwards with such tremendous force he ripped out of the grip of the sea horror. It drew back the tentacle to attack again, but Olose, now in full werewolf form, leapt over it and tore into it with his teeth, ripping out a chunk of flesh. The sea horror howled as Olose pounded towards it, jumping upwards, landing on the beast's head and tearing into it with his claws, as if digging a tunnel in its skull. The sea horror slapped him with its tentacle, and hurled him from it.

Olose crashed down some distance from the horror, at the other end of the ship, which was still jutted in the air. The monster began to climb after him, shifting its weight along the boat. Another tentacle snapped down at Olose, and Olose dove at it, ripping it literally apart and chewing on the meat of the monster. The sea horror recoiled this, squeling, and began to shake the ship, trying to crush it. Olose leapt at it, and the creature knocking him away again.

Olose crashed against the rocks the ship was aground upon, causing them to crumble slightly. The sea horror heaved itself along, approaching the tiny werewolf form of Olose. It lifted itself off of the ship and snaked into the water. The ship began to sink rapidly as soon as the sea horror's grip had been unleashed.

There was a moment of peace before the sea horror burst from the water with a mighty roar, lifting itself up onto the rock after Olose. Olose howled back at the monster, but the sea horror seemed undeterred. Olose circled around a particularly large and jagged rock, a massive spike that took the centre of the rock formation. The sea horror lifted itself up over the large rock, ready to strike down at Olose. Olose leapt at one of the legs, biting into it and feeding on it as per his animal instincts. The sea horror wailed in pain, losing its hold on itself and it crashed down, impaling itself on the mighty spiked rock. It made no further noise, dead instantly.

The body of the monster could be clearly seen, it was so old barnacles grew on the mighty hulk. A creature that had existed for aeons, grown to such immense sizes and grown in intelligence enough to set a trap for the pathetic surface life forms had been slain. And by a simple wolf no less, that was now hungrily feasting on the tentacle.

The crew of the _Destiny _watched from a distance in awe.

"He's going to feel sick tomorrrrrrow if he eats that much." Suse pointed out. Phabrizoe grinned.

"At least he's confined on that rock and can't hurt us." The tarutaru said casually. "Guess we'll have to wait until he transforms again." Trevia looked as close to crying as anybody would ever see her.

"Therrrrre goes our payment." She said sorrowfully, and the others smiled slightly, realising her sorrowful expression was merely because the job now couldn't be accomplished.

"Can't win 'em all, I guess." Nadia shrugged. "At least we're still alive."

"And I think Olose will have had enough fish food to last him a lifetime." Trevia commented in a surprising moment of humour as she watched Olose's werewolf form feast on the flesh of the fallen beast.

**A Less Important Author's Note: I know Suse went a bit too Vivlish in this chapter, throwing up and everything (which, if you're unaware, is what Vivli did all the time in the FFXI Chronicles due to being sea/airsick). Just so you know, I don't have a strange obsession with making my characters sick, but Vivli had to come across as vulnerable, so I made her airsick (I think it made her seem more fragile) and here I did it for the comedy, after Trevia's nasty description, I figured somebody like Suse probably would be sick. Hell, if I heard that, knowing it very well could be real, I'd be dammed queasy!**


	16. Adrift

**Author's Note: I'm back! Sorry about the forced absence. Anyway, this chapter is a little longer than usual which might make up for it a little (although the fact that I write short chapters anyway kind of makes that not all too great). Anyway, read on!**

**CHAPTER 16**

**ADRIFT**

_Ship's Log 12: We've got a job to transport some simple food from Seblina to Norg to continue assisting in construction of the port there. We leave tomorrow, making this the last night we have on dry land before venturing out again. I'm planning to grab some real cooked food with the crew before we depart. Suse has been promoted to ship's cook, but (and I pray to Altana she never finds this log) it isn't the best cooking in the world, to say the least, so some real food before we leave should be pleasant._

_Should be an easy enough trip. We've done the trip from Seblina to Norg enough times. A nice short trip, and a big payment at the end of it. We certainly need it right now._

Olose walked proudly into the restaurant followed by his crew. They all looked hungrily on at the people scattered about, digging deeply into huge tasty chunks of meat, large juicy pieces of fruit, and sipping delicate wines.

"Something tells me we can't afford to eat here, sir." Nadia observed.

"Good observation." Olose remarked. "Since when did Seblina have places opened like this?"

"It's new." Phabrizoe told his captain, having spent the day looking around the town. "Not that it matters. We can't afford any of this food."

"You're right." Olose sighed. "I've really messed up here." Nobody reacted to this comment, so Olose sighed and tried again. "Nadia, I said I really messed up here."

"You have?" She repeated in confusion, before suddenly remembering the plan this meant Olose was going to put into action. "You have?" She exclaimed. "Oh no, I hate it when you do that."

"What do you mean _I _have?" Olose suddenly shouted loud enough for the whole restaurant to hear.

"It was your fault! You're the captain!" Nadia screamed back. "Not that you deserve to be!"  
"How dare you say that?" Olose yelled at Nadia.

"I think it's time I taught you a lesson!" Nadia drew her sword as Olose did.

"No! Stop!" Suse begged, running towards them but being pulled back by Trevia. Olose and Nadia began to fight, but not in their normal style. Trevia held Suse back silently as Phabrizoe watched with a grin. Olose and Nadia's moves seemed to be bigger, wider than normal, and they weren't striking to harm, but hitting their swords. They were putting on a show.

Nevertheless, the customers at the restaurant moved to the edges of the room as Olose was pushed back over a table and crashed down. He lunged upwards at Nadia, completely missing her but conveniently spearing a large cooked bird. He flipped it off his sword, and Trevia snatched it out of the air, hiding it under the black jacket she was wearing. Nadia countered Olose, lunging, but only managed to catch a piece of fruit on the end of her sword. She flung it off and Phabrizoe caught it, quickly concealing it. Olose turned running over a table, slicing upwards with his sword, missing Nadia but catching a plate. The plate spun through the air, sending its contents flying towards the _Destiny _crew. They scavenged what they could without looking suspicious. Nadia lunged at Olose, missing widely but spearing another huge piece of meat from what appeared to be a feast. She flung it back, and Trevia caught it. Phabrizoe grabbed a small empty bag designed for carrying coins, and filled it with flour he found piled on a table as the captain and first mate fought. Olose looked to Trevia who nodded. He flashed a smile. Nadia turned to run away. Olose chased her for a bit before stopping, sheathing his sword and turning around with a grin to the shocked owners of the restaurant.

"Sorry about the mess." He said as Phabrizoe passed him the bag full of flour stealthily. "You know how these duels get. Here, for your troubles." He tossed the flour bag to the cook who was angrily stood behind the main counter. He caught it, grinning at what appeared to be a full bag of money. "And now I say goodbye!" Olose disappeared, followed by his crew. The cook opened the bag, finding it full of flour and angrily threw it to the ground.

The _Destiny _crew ran, laughing, disappearing into the street. They soon found themselves all perched upon the roof of a large stone shop, closed for the night, enjoying their freshly stolen food. Only Suse was without a grin.

"How long have you been planning that?" She asked in shock.

"Planning?" Olose asked surprised.

"We didn't plan anything." Nadia laughed. "Just getting into a mock fight is a great distraction, and Olose's 'I really messed up here' line is the sign we use to start one, always fits nicely."

"And the flicking the food about?" Suse questioned, confused.

"Oh, I improvised that." Olose grinned, biting into a leg of meat. "I thought it worked quite well."

"Nice way to get food." Phabrizoe admitted. "You've got to give me credit though, for the flour moneybag."  
"That was a nice touch." Olose admitted, taking another bite from their stolen feast.

"Shame we had to steal, though." Suse said quietly, clearly feeling a little guilty. Olose smiled.

"Anybody who can afford to eat at a place like that can afford to lose a little food." He said warmly, which comforted Suse a little. "Besides, we're robbing from the rich and giving to ourselves, that's not that bad now, is it?"

"Least our next job is legit." Nadia remarked. "I don't like all these illegal jobs. If we get caught with some of our jobs, we could lose the ship, or worse."

"If you're referring to that little act of piracy, I swear I had no idea she was the ambassador's daughter." Olose protested, and Suse giggled slightly, remembering that particular adventure.

"Hey! You!" Came a sudden voice. The five sprang to their feet, finding themselves facing three of the town guards. "That food! You're the thieves!"  
"Listen, I can explain." Olose began. "But first you need to look over there."

"Over where?" The guard asked, turning. Olose drew his sword, kicking the guard who had turned. The second swung in in an attack and Olose blocked it.

"Back to the ship!" He ordered, and the crew turned to run. The third guard tried to chase, but Olose stuck out his leg, tripping him up. He turned his attention to the attacking guard, blocking his blows and forcing him back. He threw the guard off of the building, and he crashed down in the streets below. Olose turned around to be face to face with the first guard, now standing. Olose slammed him with the butt of his sword hilt, and turned with a bow and a grin to the sprawled authorities, before running after his crew, stopping to sweep up some food on the way.

Olose sprinted up the deck and onto the _Destiny, _where Nadia and Trevia were already drawing the anchor and Phabrizoe was untiring the mooring rope. Olose ran onto the ship, grinning.

"You're lucky we already had the cargo loaded!" Nadia cried.

"Luck had nothing to do with it!" Olose ran up to the wheel, spinning it to turn the rudder. Trevia and Nadia had finished with the anchor and hoisted the sail. Olose turned with a wave as the port authorities skidded to a stop, seeing the _Destiny _depart. "Bye now!" He cried, grinning. He saw one of the authorities throw down his sword in rage. Olose roared with laughter as the ship sailed into the inky darkness of the night.

The _Destiny _gently sailed across the waters, the wind tearing at it dramatically. Trevia walked up to Olose, who was still at the wheel, her brown ponytail blowing wildly. Her actual tail followed suit, and it was clear Trevia was leaving it relaxed.

"What's up?" Olose asked, on a bit of a high after their adventure in the port.

"Was that entirrrrely necessarrrry?" She asked. "We could have been arrrrrrested."

"Nobody can catch us." Olose laughed. "And a crime like that they'll forget within a few days. What's more, it was fun."

"Indeed." Grumbled Trevia. "I was just afrrrraid that yourrrr actions werrrre becoming foolish, rrrrisking the crrrrew."

"We needed to eat. Nobody wanted the provisions left on the boat unless they have too. It worked, didn't it?" Trevia sighed, knowing she'd have to concede that point.

"I guess so, sirrrrr." She admitted. "It was prrrretty enterrrrrtaining."

"There you are then." Olose smiled. "Simple re-" He stopped as thunder crashed in the sky and lightning flashed. Suse screamed in fear, but Olose paid this no mind. "Hm."

"You know, if we werrrre still in town we could wait until this storrrrm passed." Trevia pointed out smugly.

"Well, I know that _now._" Olose laughed. "We have no choice. We need to head to Norg. Hopefully it won't get too bad." The thunder crashed again and it began to rain. "Hm. You had better get below deck, and take the others with you. We don't need anybody on deck who shouldn't be here." Trevia nodded, running down and opening the hatchway leading down to the lower decks. She gestured and everybody filed in, quickly.

The storm worsened quickly, but Olose managed to keep the ship sailing successfully. The crew below decks were forced to wait, listening to each thunderclap intently. Suse screamed with each strike, and was curled up in her hammock, shaking with fear. It became quite clear quite quickly that storms frightened her severely. She pulled the sheet she had around her, but continued to shake. Nadia sighed, walking over to her as the ship swayed.

"Are you alright?" She asked. Suse shook her head quietly, continuing to shiver. "We'll be fine. This ship can take a storm or two." Phabrizoe looked on, quite clearly thinking. Suse whimpered as another strike of thunder roared across the ocean, sounding much closer than before. She began to cry, and Nadia looked on sadly, unable to do anything. Phabrizoe sprang to his feet.

"I'm going on deck to relieve the captain." He said. "I can handle the ship as well as he can, and he must need a break." The tarutaru scrambled up onto the wet decks above, the rain lashing down around him.

He ran up the steps to the wheel where Olose was fighting the storm for control.

"How's it going captain?" Phabrizoe called above the storm.

"I can handle it." Olose confirmed.

"Let me take over!" Phabrizoe was forced to yell above the roaring winds. "You need a break, and I think Suse needs to see you."

"Suse? Why?" Olose asked, confused, still shouting above the wind.

"She's really scared. You're the closest thing she has to a father figure. I think you should be there for her now." He explained. Olose paused, sighing.

"Okay, I'll take a look." He said, handing the wheel to the much smaller tarutaru who struggled desperately with it.

Olose ran in, shutting the hatch behind him, looking at the crew gathered in silence. He walked over to Suse, who was still shivering.

"Are you okay?" Olose asked awkwardly, not quite sure what he should do. Suse jumped into his arms, desperately needing a comforting hug. Olose hugged her tightly, trying to comfort her. "It's okay." He said as softly as he could, realising Phabrizoe was right. She did look at him like a father, if her reaction to hugging him was anything to go by. "Listen, why don't you come up and sleep in my cabin. It's warmer there, and I have a big proper bed." Suse nodded silently, liking the idea. Like a young child, she thought the hammocks were fun, but they were nowhere near as comforting as a warm bed. Olose led her up onto deck, keeping her clutched tightly against him to try and prevent any fear she had at the lashing rain. He led her to his cabin and the two ran in.

He lifted her up as he would a child, and placed her down in the bed, tucking her in. She snuggled down, exactly like the child Olose predicted she would behave like. "See? You'll be safe in here." Olose remarked. The thunder struck again and Suse curled up into a tight ball. Olose sat down on the edge of the bed beside her. The boat was beginning to noticeably rock more as the weather outside worsened. "It's just the weather." He shrugged.

"It was storrrrmy that night my village was attacked." Suse said tearfully. "I was scared then too. My mummy held me tightly, but my daddy went outside to get my favourite toy I'd left in the barrrn. He never came back." She paused. "Then they broke into my house and killed my mummy too." She whimpered. Olose sat silently. He couldn't think of anything to say. Nothing would help. He picked her up in his arms again, holding her against him, cradling her like a baby. She looked up to him and smiled. "You'd make a good daddy." She said in a very babyish way. A side result of the trauma she had been through and the fear she was currently in, Olose guessed.

"I can certainly try." He said, slowly stroking Suse's hair to try and comfort her. She cuddled against him for warmth and comfort. It looked as if Olose was succeeding in reducing her fears.

Until a crash came from outside as thunder roared overhead. Suse screamed, but Olose had to turn his attention elsewhere. He ran outside onto the main deck to see the mast in flames, and the sail burning.

"We got hit, cap'n!" Phabrizoe yelled.

"I gathered that!" Olose yelled back. "Stay in there!" He ordered to Suse, who nodded, shutting the door to his cabin. Olose sprinted to the hold, and swung open the hatch, leaning down. "We've been hit by lightning!" He called down. "Sail's on fire! We need to get it down, now!" Trevia and Nadia scrambled out of the hold as quickly as possible. "Phabz! Help them! I'll handle the ship!" Olose ran up the steps, resisting the rain blasting down, and took control as Phabrizoe began to lower the sail along with Nadia. Trevia caught it and began to take it down, watching as it still burnt despite the heavy rain. Flames had spread to the mast, but they weren't getting far. The wind picked up and blew the flaming sail away, out of the grip of the crew. It flew off across the sky, still burning.

"We lost the sail!" Nadia screamed.

"Oh fantastic!" Olose exclaimed sarcastically, realising that the ship was now out of control. "Hang on to something! Things are about to get interesting!" The crew quickly scrambled for what ropes they could find, and Phabrizoe managed to get the hatch open leading below decks. They scrambled into the hold, sealing the door behind them as Olose fought with the wheel.

It was a welcome sight to him when he saw the sun rising the sky, the final clouds parting and the last rain drops falling. The storm was over. The ship had been practically swept clean, and Olose breathed a sigh of relief that all of their food and cargo was safely stored below decks. The sail was gone, however, and without it, there was no way Olose could sail the ship. They had no way of making it move. Soon the crew filtered on to the deck, apart from Suse, who stayed safely tucked away in Olose's cabin. Olose signalled for the crew to gather around and they quickly did so. He sighed, looking around the damaged ship.

"That could have gone better." He sighed. "Okay, listen up! We've got no sail, and no replacement, which means, in short, we aren't going anywhere. Suggestions?"

"We really need to keep a spare sail or two around." Nadia grumbled.

"Sirrrr, could we send some form of a distrrrrress call?" Trevia suggested.

"No linkshells onboard." Olose sighed. "What's the status below decks?"

"It's stable." Phabrizoe reported. "No leaks. Old girl is tougher than she looks, but I can't guarantee that will last."

"Any chance of help finding us?" Olose inquired.

"Very doubtful. I'll blast a fireball into the sky. Any nearby ships should see that as a cry for help and come to assist." Phabrizoe began to cast as soon as he finished speaking, launching a brilliant fireball high into the air.

"I've already checked the supplies while we were below deck." Nadia spoke up, despite the glow from the fireball. "We have plenty of food for at least a month, but no decent repair supplies. Some timber for Norg, but nothing useful to get us sailing again."

"Okay, enough of what we haven't got, it's time to look at what we have got." Olose decided. "And that's one rowing boat. It'll be hard to get far, and take a long time, but with a good map, a decent compass, and some accurate navigating, we may just be able to make dry land."

"Abandon ship, Captain?" Trevia asked in surprise.

"It's our safest bet." Olose confirmed. "However, there's not enough room for all five of us on the boat and enough food to keep us going." The crew exchanged worried glances. "That's why I'll be staying here with the ship."

"What?" Nadia and Trevia cried together.

"You can't go down with the ship!" Nadia protested.  
"I'm not going anywhere, and neither is the _Destiny_." Olose firmly stated. "But without me on board, you guys will have a chance, and if anybody saw Phabrizoe's signal, they'll come here and give us repairs. In turn, I can then find you and pick you up again, provided you stay on a fixed course." The crew remained silent. "We'll get through this." Olose said confidently. "I'll go and wake Suse. The rest of you, prepare what food you can fit into the boat and prepare to depart."

The crew wasted no time loading the supplies as Olose explained the situation to Suse, who looked on in utter awe and shattered disbelief. As soon as he finished the plan, she looked up to him, tearfully.

"Don't stay." She begged. "I've lost one father, I finally have another. Don't make me lose my father again." She sounded strangely mature, considering it was Suse, and it tugged at Olose's heart.

"I'm not abandoning you." Olose told her. "There's every possibility I'll survive and come to meet you." He paused. "If I am to be your father, then I'll do anything for you, including if it means staying behind to give you that extra chance." Suse looked at him tearfully. Olose had never noticed quite how close they were, and quite how much she looked up to him, but now, he stood there talking to her as a parent. She hugged him.

"Goodbye." She wept. Olose forced a smile. He hugged her back and took her out of the cabin. She smiled up at him, her small stature and childish expression contrasting with her older age.

The entire crew of the _Destiny _stood on the deck, a barrel of food already loaded onto the small rowing boat.

"This is goodbye then." Olose sighed. "Good luck, and with any luck we'll see each other again soon." The others nodded.

"Goodbye, Captain." Trevia said firmly. She paused awkwardly. "I feel I was betterrrr off knowing you. Than I was beforrrre." She struggled to explain, clearly not the sentimental type.

"See ya, Olose." Nadia smiled. "Don't go dieing before me. That would make a mockery of what it means to be immortal." Olose laughed.

"Captain, she was one hell of a ship. Don't let her sink." Phabrizoe warned. Suse just looked sadly at Olose as she walked out of his arms and boarded the tiny boat.

Olose watched as they rowed it away, Trevia at the oars. It faded out onto the horizon and Olose turned around, knowing there was nothing to do now but wait. Wait until either help came or the _Destiny _met its end, running into rocks or allowing its hull to buckle. He wondered into his cabin and sat on his bed, flicking through the ship's log. Twelve jobs and that was the end. They hadn't made it far. He certainly hadn't made it far in his new life. He knew if he drowned, he would die, despite his ability to regenerate. Arcadia would never see him again. He had vowed to return to her one day, but now knew he had failed. He never could. Unless something came along. Something to save them. Something that sounded like that ship passing outside.

Olose's eyes went wide and he bolted out of the cabin. A large ship cruised past the adrift _Destiny_, a multi sailed ship, with a painted black hull, worn and old, three cannons along its side (three on each side, Olose guessed) and a proud flag billowing from the top of the mast. Olose's heart sank. That flag was a skull and crossbones. Pirates.

"Yar, prepare to be boarded, ye dogs!" Cried a voice from up on the main ship.

"Just me here!" Olose cried up. "The ship's damaged. Valueless. Can't go anywhere without a sail."

"I have sails." Spat the pirate captain, stood proudly on his vastly more powerful ship.

"Give me one and I'll give you whatever you want from the hold." Olose told him.

"I can take that anyway, and throw ye overboard." The pirate reminded Olose. Olose grinned.

"Many of your men will die if you try that. Maybe they all will." Olose warned.

"What? You cannot stand against me!" Laughed the pirate. The crew joined in chuckling.

"Do you want to find out?" Olose asked. The pirate captain paused. His crew swung down onto the _Desriny _via ropes. They drew their swords before Olose.

"Kill him." The captain decided.

Olose quickly ducked as an attacker swung out with his sword. Olose drew his own, stabbing the pirate and flinging him into the next attacker. The two stumbled, and Olose ran, ramming them and throwing them off of the ship. Two more pirates came in and Olose blocked both of them, jumping up onto the edge of the _Destiny_. The two pirates went for him and he jumped off the little hand rail, kicking outwards as he did. He caught one in the face, sending him reeling. He landed, flipping the fallen pirate's sword into his offhand, and attacked the surviving pirate with two swords, making short work of him in a skilful flurry of moves. Olose ran as more pirates landed on the deck of the _Destiny _and he grabbed one of the boarding ropes, sheathing one sword and clutching the other in his teeth, and quickly scrambled up it, onto the deck of the pirate ship.

Pirates ran at him and he quickly began to dispatch them, swinging his twin swords in skilfully, cutting his way through his attackers and ignoring any blows they landed. He got gashed in the hand, instinctively dropping one sword before continuing to fight with his remaining weapon. He ran up to the ship's wheel, followed by the pirates. He grabbed hold of a rope hanging from the sail and swung across the deck before they could reach him. He landed on the deck and closed in on the pirate captain, a man dressed in a dark blue coat and an impressive black hat (complete with a fancy feather). The pirate captain quickly drew his sword and the two clashed. The pirates watched as the two captains duelled, Olose being forced on the defensive. He blocked the pirate captain's sword downwards, and even though the pirate captain managed to hack Olose's shins, Olose gained the upper hand. His wounds instantly regenerated and he forced the captain back. He spotted a bucket on the ground and kicked it, it hitting the captain in the chest. This distracted him enough for Olose to be able to move in, slicing his hand and stabbing the captain firmly in the shoulder. The captain yelped, and went down. Olose held his sword to him with a grin.

"Give me the sail, and I'll let you live." He said, panting slightly. The other pirates went to move in, but held back, noticing Olose held a sword to their captain.

"It be a fair trade." The pirate captain muttered. "You beat me fair and square lad. You fight as if your immortal, no fear, no injuries. We didn't be standing a chance."

"Funny you should say that." Olose laughed.

"Find him a sail!" Ordered the captain, and his crew quickly got to work. Olose turned to the beaten captain who was still clutching his shoulder and grinned. He felt quite proudly he had proven himself as an able captain.

It had been hours since the rowing boat had departed from the _Destiny_, and the crew had come to a stop. Trevia had stopped rowing, and they all sat sadly on the boat.

"We shouldn't have left him." Grumbled Nadia. "He was our captain!"  
"We did what he wanted us to do." Phabrizoe noted.

"He sacrrrraficed himself for us." Trevia said admirably. "There was no rrrrreward, but he did it."

"You admire that?" Phabrizoe asked, guessing from her tone of voice.

"It is a trait I wish I possessed." Trevia admitted. The crew sat in silence. Suddenly, Suse, who had been silent since they had left, sprang to her feet, rocking the boat.

"Look! Look!" She cried cheerfully. The crew spun, looking around in awe. They all grinned. A ship was approaching, a new bright white sail flying proudly.

It was the _Destiny._

**Author's Note: Just a point or two. I'd love to know especially what people thought of this chapter because it was my first real attempt at doing very serious drama (or at least it was supposed to be) between characters when they're forced to leave the ship. And, as with all my first attempts, I'd love to know how people thought it turned out. It felt a bit odd to write, not really fitting in, but it suits how I think the crew would react. At least I feel it turned out better than my first attempt at romance! (That single-handedly destroyed the FFXI Chronicles 3!). But I'd love to know what people thought of my attempt at that. It probably feels very amateur and heavy handed, since I'm not used to that kind of thing, so sorry about that.**

**Can't be as bad as my heavy handed character development this chapter! I've always been bad at that, and I feel Trevia went spectacularly wrong as I tried to show her evolving over the last two chapters, and instead she just seems dammed inconsistent.**

**One other thing that deserves mention. The crew getting food via a fake fight and flicking it to the others is stolen from a comedy adventure version of the Three Musketeers I saw today. They even used the bag of flour. I thought it was funny, and thought it might help establish the crew as rogues a bit more than just a merchant ship. As well as being the funny contrast to the later drama when everything goes wrong (which is then spectacularly ruined by a swashbuckler style ending, that's shitty writing on my part). But that's a concept I blatantly stole, so thought I had better point it out. Firefly had an episode where the ship was disabled and the crew left the captain behind in a similar fashion to this too, so that's another source of a concept! Although it's not as evident as a blatantly stolen scene.**

**Hopefully the ending isn't too abrupt either. I didn't feel anything else had to be said, and I was getting tired and felt that the chapter had gone on long enough. I didn't want to leave it on a cliffhanger (which I could have done with the appearance of the pirates) because each '_Destiny _chapter' is supposed to be a self contained story to give you an idea of the sort of things that happened to Olose during these years of his life as a rouge.**

**This author's note is stupid, almost becoming a writer's commentary, so I'll shut up now! Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**


	17. Diplomacy

**Author's Note: I apologise in advance for this one. My writing is usually pretty poor, but this time, this chapter turned out to be one of the worse I've ever written (_the _worse if it weren't for the FFXI Chronicles 3!). I tried to make it good, but really struggled to make it work, and the concept that seemed good in my head just fell flat on the page. It's not just crap, it's short as well! I did consider missing the update for today (which is superbly late anyway I struggled to write this so much) but decided since the chapters are all supposed to be individual adventures at the moment, it was pointless wasting this. Plus it sets up an idea I have for the next chapter nicely. **

**But I apologise for it being worse than usual. I'm sorry!**

**In other news, and a bit related, I am struggling with one thing, nautical terms. As you might imagine, I know zilch about sailing, so the actual technical terms for the boat are described the best I can with words because I have no idea what I should call them. Sorry about that too. That's just me being naïve and stupid when it comes to all things watery. Hopefully it's not too distracting.**

**For somebody who loves pirate stories, I really should learn some things about ships.**

**CHAPTER 17**

**DIPLOMACY**

_Ship's Log 21: Another milk run. Simple transportation of supplies. This time though, we're meeting a ship out in the ocean and transferring them. Apparently they want the supplies but aren't overly keen on divulging the position of their port. Money is reasonable, so we're not going to complain. The crew can get a little restless due to the repetitive ease of these jobs, but they sure beat some of the tougher ones we've been sent on._

The _Destiny _sailed across the calm ocean, approaching another, larger, ship that had its sails drawn and floated silently on the water.

"I see it!" Suse cried from the lookout perch at the top of the mast. "Urrrm, I mean, ship sighted, Cap'n!" Olose looked out across the water, spotting the large ship, its three sails flying proudly, a golden symbol on them that Olose couldn't quite make out.

"I'm bringing us in. Get ready to raise the sails." Olose commanded. Nadia and Trevia nodded. Phabrizoe prepared to lower the anchor.

"Why does everrrrybody have a better ship than us?" Suse grumbled from the lookout post as they approached the mighty vessel.

"Bigger. Not better." Olose corrected. "Lower the anchor Phabz!" He promptly ordered. There was a pause. "Phabz? Phabrizoe?"

Phabrizoe had frozen, seeing the ship they approached. The huge golden emblem upon the sails stood before him proudly. The entire ship seemed oddly off scale. It was big, but each part of it was small, as if built for smaller people. The emblem was that of Windurst.

"Phabrizoe!" Snapped Nadia, and Phabrizoe snapped around, quickly lowering the anchor. Suse scrambled down from the lookout and walked up behind Phabrizoe.

"Hey! It's from Windurrrrrst!" Suse remarked. "Isn't that wherrrre you come frrrrom?" She asked happily.

"I'm afraid it is." Phabrizoe answered horrified.

"Hello therey-werey!" Cried a tarutaru from the deck of the approaching ship.

"Hello!" Olose called back. "I'm Captain Sampson, this is the _Destiny. _I believe we have some cargo for you."

"Indeed you should, Captain." Came the response from the little tarutaru. Olose tried to repress laughing at the crew of tiny people scampering around the deck.

"I'll send the boat over right away." Olose signalled to Nadia and Trevia to start loading the supplies onto the rowing boat.

"No need, Captain, we'll come over ourselves." The tarutaru captain replied. Olose breathed a mental sigh of relief at the lack of tarutaru style speak he was hearing. That always drove him crazy.

"I advise against that Captain." Phabrizoe suddenly spoke up, sounding as if he was fighting back worry. "It would not end well."

"He makes a good point." Trevia stated. "A ship from Windurrrrst out here? What happened to them being in exile?"

"Good question." Olose admitted. "Let's just get the job done and go home. The money's good, that's all that matters."

Phabrizoe seemed oddly uneasy as a boat with an unusually large party of tarutaru and mithra onboard departed from the vessel belonging to Windurst, approaching the _Destiny_. The crew arrived and suddenly, and completely to Olose's confusion, they burst out around the ship, drawing weapons and taking fighting stances.

"What the-" Nadia began.

"What are you doing?" Olose snapped.

"Hand over the fugitive Captain, and nobody gets hurtaru." The tarutaru captain ordered quickly.

"Fugitive? What the hell are you talking about?" Olose cried. He noticed the invading crew were all looking at Phabrizoe. Olose sighed. "Phabz, is there something you forgot to tell me?"  
"Not at all, Captain." Phabrizoe replied angrily.

"Did he mention he betrayed Windurstaru and fled to Bastok?" The tarutaru captain asked, grinning.

"That's not true!" Snapped Phabrizoe. "I went to Bastok to get out in the world because Windurst forbid it!"

"We withdrew because of the dangers of magic." The captain explained. "You brought them to Bastok! Imagine, with its technological power and magic at its disposal it could crush the world with its might!"

"What?" Phabrizoe laughed. "Do you really think that Bastok would have not discovered magic for themselves? I didn't tell them anything. I went there to learn to be a mage and an adventurer!"  
"Captain." The tarutaru turned to Olose. "This man is wanted by the Federation of Windurstaru. Hand him to us, and we will be on our way."

"Pay us." Olose said coldly.

"I will confess, this job was but a trap for us to finally capture this fugitive." The captain admitted.

"Pay us, and leave." Olose repeated. His crew looked slightly shocked.

"We will, if that is all that allows us to take this fugitive with us." The tarutaru agreed.

"You misunderstand." Olose smiled. "Pay us, and leave. My crew will remain. _All _of my crew. We did the job we were hired for. You want to capture Phabrizoe, send a bounty hunter and see if he can get past us."

"We have him now, Captain, and we will be taking him with us back to Windurstaru." The tarutaru captain explained smugly. "You're greatly outnumbered Captain, you can't stop me." The tarutaru and mithra gathered on the ship made threatening gestures with their weapons, stabbing at Olose's surrounded crew. Olose drew his sword at lightning speed, and held it extended.

"I'll give it my best shot." Olose grinned. "And I mean that literally." He swept his sword down, striking the cannon sat on deck with such force that sparks flew, lighting the fuse and blasting a cannon ball out across the ocean. It slammed into the other ship. The captain's eyes went wide and his crew prepared to attack.

"No! Stop!" The captain yelled. "That, Captain, was an act of warey-tarey. Hand over Phabrizoe or face the wrath of the navy of Windurst."

"I thought you were in exile. Aren't you trying to avoid wars here?" Nadia asked, confused.

"I will do what I must to complete my mission." The captain stated, folding his arms confidently. "Your little ship can't stand up to the entire nation of Windurst!"

"You can't outwit _Destiny_, pal." Olose said, quite proud of his pun. The captain rolled his eyes.

"This is your last chance, Captain." The tarutaru warned.  
"If we sink your ship and send your corpses to the bottom of the ocean, then you can't report us, and we have nothing to fear." Olose beamed. "So, you can either turn around and leave, or we can blow you out of the water."

"You have insufficient weapons and crew, and no sufficient plan." The tarutaru pointed out smugly.

"Doesn't that just scare you to death?" Olose grinned, suddenly kicked the tarutaru to the chest and drawing his sword. He moved in quickly, slashing two of the tarutarus before they could even draw their swords. Nadia drew her weapon quickly, stabbing a mithra in the back before she could react.

"Backstabbing?" Trevia asked Nadia casually.

"We're pirates." Nadia shrugged, ducking as a fireball flew over her head.

"Destroy them!" Screamed the captain. Olose ran in and began duelling the captain, who was clearly nowhere near as skilled with a sword as Olose. Olose drove him back to the water and kicked him in.

An angry looking mithra approached Phabrizoe who watched angrily.

"You'rrrre mine, you little rrrrunt." The mithra hissed. Phabrizoe drew a sword casually.

"You sure about that?" He asked. "I can be pretty nasty with this thing."

"What arrrre you going to do? Hack my shins? You tarutaru have no skill with a blade!" Laughed the mithra before she got hit by a lightning bolt.

"Magic is a powerful aid, mithra." He spat, lunging at her. She blocked him, and her eyes went wide as Phabrizoe flipped over her head, striking as he did so. He landed behind her and flipped off the mast, sailing past her arm. He managed to slice it and she dropped her blade. He landed and, as she predicted, hacked her shins. She went down screaming. "Never underestimate an angry tarutaru." He gloated. The deck of the _Destiny _suddenly exploded into flames.

"They're firing cannons!" Yelled Suse in blind panic.

"Phabrizoe! Get to the helm!" Olose ordered quickly. "Bring us about! Hard to starboard!" Olose had already hoisted the anchor, and Trevia had taken the initiative, making sure the sails were flying. Nadia quickly began loading another cannonball into the cannon. Another blast hit the ship, tearing across its deck. The survivors of the raiding party abandoned the ship, allowing the mighty Windurst warship to destroy it itself.

"I was willing to let you live!" Yelled the now soaked tarutaru captain from his ship. "But instead you will die, along with the traitor!"

"Nobody threatens my crew!" Olose shouted back. "Prepare to be blasted out of the water!" Olose fired the cannon, and the single shot hit the warship. The warship fired three shots, ripping the _Destiny _to pieces.

"We can't stand this kind of firrrre!" Trevia yelled, still maintaining a calm and working hard to put out the new flames.

"Phabrizoe! I have the helm!" Olose ran, taking the wheel. "Can you cook us up some fireballs?"

"Yes, but nothing they can't do." Phabrizoe explained.

"Who cares? Aim for their cannons." The deck of the _Destiny _exploded spectacularly as an explosive cannonball hit it, leaving the _Destiny _looking like a gutted fish, from the top at least.

"A hit like that on the main hull and we're junk on the bottom of the ocean!" Nadia yelled.

"Those cannonballs are explosive, and they must be stocked by the cannons. If you can hit them, then we're out of this." Olose told Phabrizoe.

"We don't have much time. This is a one shot thing." Phabrizoe said, his usual confidence sounding shaken.

"Then take the shot!" Olose ordered. Phabrizoe began to cast as the crew on the warship loaded three more cannonballs. Enough to destroy the _Destiny _once and for all. Phabrizoe fired his fireball in desperation.

It hit the ship, and there was a moment's pause. The warship suddenly exploded spectacularly, a wave of heat hitting the crew of the _Destiny. _They stood in silence for a moment.

"Well, I bet they learnt a thing or two about safely stacking ammo." Olose quipped. The crew breathed a collective sigh of relief.

It was when the badly damaged _Destiny _was heading back for Seblina, practically home for the crew now, that Phabrizoe entered Olose's cabin while Nadia practiced taking the helm, struggling with her one arm.

"Captain, I've made a decision." He stated. "I'm leaving."

"What? Why?" Olose quickly stood, springing from his chair, quite shaken.

"I'm a risk to this crew. I nearly got us all killed." He explained.

"Phabz, I'm a werewolf." Olose stated bluntly. "I'm a much bigger threat than you. You're a member of my crew and so I'll defend you no matter what happens, along with everybody else. Windurst will think twice before attacking us again, we blew up one of their ships! They're normally reserved enough about combat as it is. I'd imagine they're willing to let you slip through their fingers."

"But Captain, I betrayed your trust. I didn't tell you of a potential threat that was entirely my fault." Phabrizoe tried to explain.

"We all have secrets. Besides, it was Windurst's overreaction, not you, that caused this." Olose explained. "And we got hell of a loot from the wreckage! With the money we'll make off of all the equipment we found we can afford a full refit for the _Destiny, _and a well deserved break on land while it happens."

"Thank you, Captain." Phabrizoe said awkwardly. "Many captains would have made me walk the plank for what I did, or worse."

"Believe me, I've done a lot worse." Olose said, trying to hide the pain flashing across his face. "But if you insist you must be punished, you can go and check through the cargo, make sure none of it was damaged. See if we have anything useable that we won't just sell we salvaged from that Windurst ship too."

"Can't I just swab the decks?" Phabrizoe asked with a smirk.

"I never see the point in that. We're at sea! Waves wash the deck clean. Not my crew. Now get to work!" Olose snapped in a mockery of being a formal captain, considering everybody knew he wasn't.

"Yessir!" Phabrizoe saluted sarcastically.


	18. Arcadia

**Author's Note: This is another chapter I should apologise for. I know people get tired of me putting myself down (but seriously, you have to admit, that last chapter was one of my worse), and I'm hoping nobody thinks I do it for sympathy, I really don't. I honestly don't believe these chapters are that good, and I feel like I'm letting you all down a bit. In all honesty, when I first started writing on this site, I thought I was quite talented, but when I started reading the work of pretty much everybody else, I realised I was nowhere near their levels of writing, and actually not very good at all. That's entirely beside the point, because that last chapter was even worse than I usually write.**

**So, why am I apologising for _this _chapter? Because it gets even worse. Well, I actually think it's better than the last chapter, but I did something very stupid. You'd think I'd play it safe and write something I'm good at to make up for the last one.**

**I didn't. I did romance. The one thing it's been proven I cannot do, no matter how hard I try. But unfortunately it's important to this plot, so I had to do it. Sorry that this means you have another dire chapter full of my terrible romance, I know I'm truly terrible at writing it. But hopefully there are a few enjoyable bits in there, and it continues to set up the next bit of the plot.**

**CHAPTER 18**

**ARCADIA**

_Ship's Log 24: We're still in port at Seblina, but I've updated the log due to the latest installation of two new cannons, doubling our offensive firepower (saying something about what it used to be like). The ship has gone through many upgrades while we've been docked here, and has been totally refitted now. It might even manage to live up to Nadia's standards, and miss any comments on her behalf! It's certainly been reinforced, making it stronger than ever, while actually using lighter materials, so we are in fact faster now. Just a few more days, and we can finally get out to sea, it's been months since we docked and our money has severely dwindled. I for one can't wait to put Seblina behind me and get back out on the waves._

Two chocobos hauling a carriage pulled up outside of the entrance to Seblina. Half of the moon hung in the sky, glistening down on the desert. It was slightly cold, and it chilled the figure who emerged from carriage. She wrapped her arms around herself, shivering. She turned to the driver of the carriage.

"Thank you." She said with a formal curtsey.

"You will be alright to return on your own, won't you, milady?" Asked the driver. The woman paused, unsure.

"I am certain I will be." She decided, despite not being convinced. She had no idea how she would return. The driver looked slightly worried.

"For a bit extra, I can wait." He offered. The woman reached into a bag of gold, before deciding to hand the entire bag over.

"Take all of it, as I do not know how long I will be." She told him. The driver grinned enthusiastically at the money he had received.

"Yes ma'am!" He cried happily. The girl curtseyed again and disappeared into the town, shivering as she went.

The woman paused outside of the tavern, listening carefully. She could hear cheerful singing coming from within.

"Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!" One of the voices was instantly recognisable, despite the cheerfulness, and slight drunkenness, which she had certainly not expected (and thought was impossible). "We pillage, we plunder, we rifle, and loot, drink up, me hearties, yo ho. We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot, Drink up me hearties, yo ho!" She cautiously swung open the door, and scanned the tavern, slightly worried. A huge group of people were gathered, singing, and at the centre of the group, five people, arms rested over each other's shoulders. On the outside were a small tarutaru and a mithra, and closer to the central figure was the woman she recognised as Nadia and what looked like a mithra without a tail. She instantly recognised the middle figure. She knew she shouldn't. She knew he was a stranger to her. But she could see his eyes, and hear his voice.

Olose and his crew were singing happily, sharing drinks, and having a good time with other merchants and pirates. They had built up quite a reputation after sinking a warship of Windurst, not to mention dealing with a sea horror, helping establish Norg and many other adventures. Crews from dozens of ships would track them down to hear their stories, and once they had all got sufficiently drunk they would start singing. Of course, Olose was just acting, unable to feel the affect of any alcohol, but he a lot of fun anyway.

Except this time he fell instantly silent in shock. He didn't see her, but caught her scent, over the smell of alcohol and the dozens of people packing out the tavern. And he recognised it instantly. For a moment he thought it was coincidence, just a similar scent, or a woman wearing the same perfume. It couldn't be her. He stood, and everything he suspected was confirmed.

Arcadia stood by the doorway.

He quickly stood, and ran through the crowd, pushing them aside, much to everybody's confusion. She saw him coming, and smiled uncontrollably. He grabbed her, hugging her tightly.

"What are you doing here?" He cried in a mixture of shock and joy. "I thought I-"

"I could not stay away." She said softly, fighting back tears. Olose smiled. "You have changed." She noted, trying to change the subject.

"It beats being dead." Olose smiled. "I've missed you so much."  
"I know." She smiled. "I've missed you too."

"I've?" He repeated, a little surprised that she contracted her own words. Strict formality usually prevented her from doing that.

"What is it?" She asked slightly amused. Olose allowed himself a happy smile, so relieved to be in her presence.

"You can't be here." He sighed, his face straightening again. "It's too dangerous."

"Too dangerous?" She questioned. "It is only for one night. I had to see you again. I learnt that the _Destiny _was in repairs, and I knew that it was my one chance to find you and see you again. Nobody knows I have left, even if Abaj was still watching me there is no way he could know that I am here."

"How did you find out about the _Destiny_?" Olose asked, knowing that he had avoided contacting Arcadia in anyway, even mentioning the ship, to keep her safe.

"Money." She answered. "Luck. Paying the right people to find information for me." She paused. "I just wanted to see you again. For the first time, really. This new face of yours is odd."

"It's still me." Olose told her gently.

"There is one way I could check." Olose was slightly surprised as she rose up on her toes and kissed him gently. He looked down into her brown eyes, probing their depth as she broke away. She smiled. "Definitely the same person." She smiled. Olose was slightly surprised by her. It seemed an unusually brash thing for her to do. "I love you, you know." She said, suddenly and quite unexpectedly. Olose jolted back, a little surprised to hear it. Arcadia looked as if she would cry at this reaction. "I assume you do not feel the same way." She stated, judging by his reaction and only by snapping back into her strict formal stance did she manage to resist bursting into tears.

"No, no!" Olose said quickly. "Arcadia, I love you! I have from the moment I met you. I'm just a bodyguard, I could never say anything. I love you so much I left you behind to keep you safe."

"I do not want to be safe. I want to be with you." She stated. "No matter how dangerous it gets."

"No. Arcadia, that can't be done. One day, we can be together. But not now. Not until I'm convinced Abaj is no longer a threat." Olose explained. She looked at him tearfully.

"Just one night then?" She requested. Olose took her hand, still finding himself surprised at how soft and delicate it felt.

"One night." He smiled. "Want to meet the _Destiny? _Me and her have been through a lot together."

"I might get jealous." She joked, flashing a smile revealing her sparkling white teeth.

"Since when did you tell jokes like that?" Olose laughed, trying to catch up on what he had missed.

"Since I realised how much you meant to me." She answered sincerely. "Everything about you. The way you spoke, the way you behaved. The way you were always there for me." Olose's face dropped at the memories, and felt almost as if he was in a trance. As if this was just a resurfacing memory of a life he had left. One that he could never return too. Just Altana teasing him, offering him one small memory.

"Come on." He said as he began to leave the tavern. "I'll show you the ship." Arcadia smiled and followed him.

As soon as they stood outside of the dark tavern Olose saw her properly in the moonlight. She looked as beautiful as he remembered, her face was utterly unchanged (although she wore so much make-up, it was impossible to tell anyway). He was slightly surprised to see that she was dressed slightly more practically than normal. She had her hair tied back into a long ponytail instead of any ornate arrangement, wore high heeled boots instead of shoes and was dressed in a shorter black skirt and sleeveless top, which was considerably more pratical than what she used to wear. She still had expensive earrings hanging from her ears, an ornate and fancy looking diamond necklace and long red fingernails, and still didn't look like she'd survive on her own in the wild for more than five minutes, but at least it was an improvement.

Arcadia noticed Olose looked over her style of dress, and decided to comment.

"My father helped me dress for the occasion." She explained.

"I thought you said nobody knew you were here!" Olose quickly snapped, worried.

"He is as concerned about you as I am." She stated. "He cared for you a lot, because of how you protected me. He wanted to make sure you were safe, and figured out what I was doing. He offered me some more practical clothes so that I might blend into Norg slightly better." The boots, skirt and top were significantly less noticeable than her usual dresses, making her look more like a clueless city girl seeking transport than a very rich noblewoman searching for a friend, but the thick make-up and expensive jewels still made her look very out of place. At least nobody should figure out who she was, and thus who Olose was, and that's all that mattered. Olose was a little concerned that her father had figured out what she was doing, because if he had, so could Abaj. He swept such concerns aside and decided to enjoy the moment, knowing that it may never come again.

He led her, holding her hand, down to the _Destiny,_ which was sat looking fairly out of place in the dry dock, with a construction tower beside it.

"Give it a few more days and it'll be back in the ocean." Olose said proudly, displaying the ship. Arcadia seemed a little under whelmed.

"I was expecting something a bit grander." She admitted.

"Hey, she's got personality." Olose defended.

"It does not look very stable." Arcadia peered at the bottom of the ship. It had even been scrubbed clean of its barnacles since it was raised into the dry dock.

"Oh, come on, you're beginning to sound like Nadia!" Olose laughed. "This little ship has been through a lot! Sunk a ship of Windurst, you know? That's why she's in refit. Got ripped to shreds."

"Windurst?" Arcadia exclaimed in surprise. "I do not think I shall ask." She mumbled to herself, sounding quite comical in her formal tones.

"Hey! They attacked us first!" Olose cried, and Arcadia laughed to herself.

"So, do I get to go on board?" She asked.

"Well, she isn't at sea at the moment, but you certainly can look around." Olose shrugged.

"I noticed." Arcadia told him with a smile.

"What?" Olose asked.

"I noticed that the ship is not at sea. I like to think I am fairly observant about those kind of things." She smiled again and Olose laughed slightly.

"I think I preferred it when you didn't have a sense of humour, I didn't feel so stupid." He said with a playful shrug. "C'mon, I'll show you around."

The two stood on the deck of the _Destiny_, which felt odd under Olose's feet, since it wasn't bobbing on the waves as it usually did. Arcadia looked up at the half moon, shining brightly in the sky.

"It must be so amazing, out at sea, looking out across the ocean with the moon shining down upon it." She said dreamily.

"It really is something." Olose smiled. "Although I have my issues with the moon." He joked.

"I understand." She paused. "Maybe I will get to see it one day." She said wishfully.

"When this is over, and we have no worries, I'll take you out to sea. I'll show you the ocean and the life I've lived. But until that point comes, it can never happen." He sighed. "I've made a log of our adventures, I wish I could give it to you, but if anybody found it-"

"I understand." She said gently. "I shall wait." She looked out to the ocean, just down the ramp from the dry dock. "It's so beautiful out there."

"It isn't easy you know." Olose tried to explain. "We've nearly met our end more than once." She brought a hand to his shoulder in concern. He laughed. "But you know, I'm immortal and all."

"So, what is the crew like?" Arcadia decided to ask, changing the subject so that she could avoid worrying about Olose.

"Nice. Phabrizoe can get a bit grumpy, but Nadia is complaining less. Both Suse and Trevia have tried to kill me before, but we're past that now. I've become a bit of an adopted father for Suse, she's very childish." Arcadia looked blank, not actually recognising most of the names. "When we can see each other again properly, I'll introduce you properly."

"This is stupid, is it not?" Arcadia mumbled. "Here we are, one night, one night in a thousand and that is all. It will just make it hurt more to be apart."

"Hey, I'd rather have a happy memory than none at all." Olose told her. "What's the point in living if we don't get happy memories from it?"

"But we cannot continue those memories-" Arcadia began, and Olose smiled.

"Everything comes to an end, Arcadia." He told her.

"Except you." She sniggered. "You're immortal."

"Or so I'm told." Olose laughed. The two stared at each other, silent for a moment.

"I wish this moment would never end." Arcadia sighed. Olose let out a breath.

"Okay." He stated. "Then it won't."

"What?" Arcadia asked, confused.

"It won't. I've had enough. Arcadia, we need to go our separate ways for a while, but this time we're working together. I need you to get everything you can on Abaj. What he's been doing lately, how he acts, what trade routes he uses. If you could track me down, you can find out about him." He explained.  
"I do not understand." She told him, confused.

"No more running." Olose stated. "We stand and fight. You want this moment to last, then it'll last. It'll take a while, but if we can gather enough information, we can catch Abaj off guard."

"But he is immortal." Arcadia stated, frustrated.

"So am I." Grinned Olose. "I've had enough of this. This night, just being around you again, it's been the greatest experience of my life. And I'm not going to let Abaj ruin it any longer."

"But he defeated you last time!" Arcadia protested. "You wanted to protect me, now I want to protect you!"

"Not even Abaj can resist _Destiny_." Olose smiled. "He must use ships to get around. We'll find one time when the ship is understaffed. Even if it takes years, Abaj still doesn't know that I'm alive. As long as you can be subtle, he won't catch on. We'll get him back for what he did. And then we can be together forever." Arcadia nodded as a determined look flashed across her face.

"I will do what I can." She stated. "There will be no need for happy memories, we can be together until the day we die once Abaj is taken care of." Olose paused. For the first time, inevitability crossed his mind. Even if he was to win, and live with Arcadia, one day she would die, and he would live. The curse of immortality. His determination fizzled for a moment. "Olose?" She asked, concerned. He shook it off.

"It's nothing." He said. "Now, we can't keep this going any longer. It's too dangerous. I will see you again Arcadia, and Abaj will be dead!"

"We have the rest of the night." Arcadia reminded him. "Let us not cut that short."

"No, I suppose we shouldn't." Olose smiled.

It was Suse who finally asked the obvious question back in the tavern.

"So, who was that lady?" She asked Nadia, as she was the only one who seemed to know what was going on.

"Just someone from the Captain's past, that's all." Nadia forced a smile at the memories of their old life. "He'll be back soon."

"I wonder what those two arrrre doing together." Suse said naively, and it was Trevia who chuckled.

"Cute." She remarked. Suse looked confused. She suddenly gasped aloud.

"You don't think they'rrrre-" The others tried to maintain blank expressions. Suse looked shocked. Of course, there was no evidence of just what Suse thought they were doing, which Nadia found amusing.

" Don't worry. They're just talking." Nadia stated. "Hopefully not for too long. The Captain's past is…complicated." Nadia sighed. "It isn't something he should revisit."

"Perrrrhaps then, you should tell us why." Trevia suggested. "We deserrrrve to know." Nadia sighed. She knew Olose wouldn't like it, but he couldn't hide for ever.

She told the story and explained everything.

Just as Olose was counting on her doing so, as he knew the entire crew would have to unite to take Abaj down.

**Author's Note: A few other things that I decided to put separately from my whining beforehand. Yes, I stole the song. I can't write songs, and certainly not sea shanties. Besides, it was a bit of fun. Also, you're probably wondering since when Seblina had a dry dock (or moreover probably thinking 'Wow! Vivli actually used a term that is semi-accurate!' considering how little I know about ships and sailing and things). Well, it's still 590 odd years before FFXI, so I can put that one down to Seblina changing over the years. At the moment it's supposed to be the most major port town in the whole of Vana'diel (since Norg is still under construction). And saying that 'dry dock' is semi accurate really shows how little I know about sailing (being what I can figure a _very _common term, and I still don't know if it's right or not!).**

**Oh, and as for what Arcadia and Olose were doing at the end? Well, I'm nice and innocent, nothing bad! Honest!**

**They were, urm, playing chess!**

**Anyway, sorry for the horrific romantic chapter. One day I'll learn how to write a good romance! (Probably after I actually get involved in romance!). But for now you have to put up with my terrible writing. Sorry! Hopefully the next chapter should improve things, going back to exciting action. Of course, ideas on paper often go wrong.**

**But just to keep interest, and to keep hope after two utterly dire chapters things are going to get better, here's a teaser:**

"**Bastok and San'd Oria go to war, their navies clashing at sea as the battle rages on land, and the _Destiny _is caught in the middle of it."**

**Sounds exciting huh? It'll probably go horribly wrong, but should be interesting (and, of course, reference this plot from this chapter, but the 'gather information' thing means that the crew of the _Destiny _have more adventures before they can tackle Abaj).**


	19. War

**Author's Note: I send out a huge apology for being so annoying in my last notes. I really don't want to annoy anybody, I was just noting how I felt about my own writing, but I really don't mean to annoy anybody, and so I'm very sorry for doing so. Especially TheFrogKiller, who's continued to be a huge help for my writing in so many ways.**

**In other news there is one thing I could use an opinion on. Sooner or later the Abaj plot line will draw to a close, and after that, this whole lifetime. Olose is immortal, but everybody around him is not. These characters have to die and Olose has to live on. What I want to know is whether people want me to end the story at the end of this plot arc, with Olose living happily with Arcadia and the rest of his life a mystery, or whether they want me to continue his adventures as Vana'diel takes shape further, eventually reaching a climax in modern FFXI with Olose meeting the heroes of the FFXI Chronicles (as he did in that story). So basically, I don't know whether to end this story at the end of this plotline, or keep it rolling to tell the whole of Olose's story.**

**Any opinions anybody? Let me know by review or e-mail! (If you readers are out there…).**

**Anyway, enjoy the chapter!**

**CHAPTER 19**

**WAR**

_Ship's Log 27: I received the first package from Arcadia, and can finally begin to focus on dealing with Abaj. But, unfortunately, this will have to wait. Matters have taken a turn for the worse for Vana'diel in general. Bastok has been expanding rapidly over the past few months, and San d'Oria is beginning to feel threatened. They've begun to push back the advances of Bastok, and in retaliation Bastok has declared war on San d'Oria._

_Everybody is tense. Everybody is afraid that Seblina is going to get caught in the crossfire, after all, it is between the two nations. And it seems increasingly likely that there is going to be a naval conflict on the waters. Jobs are down, everybody is frightened to travel, and the air seems heavy._

_I can only hope Arcadia is alright. Hopefully they'll avoid Tavnazia. Just because it's a hume city doesn't mean it's affiliated with Bastok._

_We have our own concerns anyway. Sailors are claiming they've seen the Bastok fleet amassing. It looks like the war is spreading to the sea, and when it does, it'll be carnage for every ship captain and crew in the land._

The tavern was unusually empty, and silent. Everybody seemed tense, curled up like a spring waiting to snap. Olose was sat, flicking through the paper's Arcadia had sent him, looking for any exploitable information on Abaj. But even he knew it was futile, with war hanging over them as it was, it was pointless trying to follow anything. Travelling anywhere was dangerous, permits were in constant use to be able to do anything and both of the nations were under martial law.

Olose decided that there was only one place without pressure. The sea. Out there he always felt free, and knew it would be the best place to go. Of course, he knew in actuality the seas were just as dangerous, with the Bastokian and San d'Orian navies populating them, but the feeling of freedom was there, and he felt that was all that was needed. His crew's moral was at an all time low.

He got up, deciding he had to lead the crew out of Seblina. They could sail to Norg, they'd be safe there until the war blew over. He began heading out of the tavern when Suse burst in, looking frantic.

"Come quick!" She cried. "They'rrrre herrrre!"

"Who are? What are?" Olose asked in confusion, stumbling after her. The two ran out of the tavern, and Olose's face fell. Ships. Hundreds of them. Bearing the symbol of Bastok proudly, sailing by the port. Some were drawing in as others continued on their way. Troops began to filter into Seblina. "They must be trying to establish a foothold here." Olose guessed, half explaining to Suse as he went. "A military location this close to San d'Oria would be invaluable. They could launch multiple strikes from here both at sea and on land. San d'Oria wouldn't stand a chance."

"Well, what are San d'Orrrria going to do?" Suse asked, sounding innocently confused by all the talk of war.

"Retaliate. They can't let Bastok take Seblina. It means this place is going to be turned into a war zone." Olose answered. Suse gulped.

"What arrrre we going to do?" She asked in panic.

"Leave." Olose stated. "We'll get to the ship and head for Norg. Where's Nadia?"

"Get your dammed hands off me!" Came a cry. Olose and Suse spun around to see Nadia pinned by two of the soldiers that had leapt off the docking ships.

"Shut up!" Ordered one of the soldiers, hitting Nadia. She tried to move, but two of them had pinned her, and she was hopelessly overpowered. Lacking an arm didn't help her either.

"What's going on here?" Snapped Olose.

"What's it to you?" Spat the guard. "Stay out of this!"  
"I'm Captain Sampson, that's Nadia, my first mate. Whatever you do to her, you do to me." Olose stated angrily.

"First mate? She's an elvaan." The soldier growled.

"But she's not a soldier of San d'Oria so back off!" Olose shouted. "Or are you onto butchering civilians already?" One of the soldiers turned around, squaring up to Olose and attempting to appear intimidating. Olose took a step closer to the soldier, clearly being a bigger build than him and the soldier decided to back down, signalling for Nadia's release. She walked over to Olose angrily, clenching her fist to resist striking the soldiers.

"Just watch yourself." Threatened the soldier. "We wouldn't want you to be caught in the crossfire."

"Crossfire?" Olose asked, suddenly worried.

"Yes." Smirked the guard. "The San d'Orian navy is on its way. We've beaten them here, but this town is about to be reduced to rubble. Be a shame if somebody as pleasant as yourself got killed."

"Don't threaten me." Olose's voice deepened into a powerful growl, aided by his werewolf state. The guard clearly trembled slightly. "When will San d'Oria's fleet be here?"

"A matter of hours." The soldier straightened up, trying to appear as more of an official of Bastok. "We're going to evacuate all the civilians we can. We're not monsters!"

"We'll see about that." Olose stated. "Nadia! Get the crew! We're leaving!"

"You can't go out on the seas!" Protested the soldier.

"Yes we can." Olose snapped in answer. "You won't get the civilians to safety in time. Hundreds of lives are hanging in the balance. The only chance to save them is to stop the coming battle."

"How can you do that alone?" The soldier grunted, slightly laughing.

"We'll find a way." Olose smiled, marching away.

Olose marched through the city, arriving at the _Destiny. _It still looked fairly new and strong after its refit, having only run a single mission since it had been placed back in the water. Nadia hurried after him.

"Captain?" She inquired. "What are you planning? We can't stop an invasion fleet! Let alone when both sides are intent on killing each other!"

"We can't win by force." Olose admitted. "We may need to employ other tactics."

"Other tactics?" Asked Nadia sceptically.

"I'm still working on the plan." Olose smirked. "Get the crew. It's not safe to leave anybody in Seblina."

"Aye aye, sir." Nadia saluted with a sarcastic smile on her face. Olose sighed, running up onto the ship. They were about to try and diffuse the war. Common sense told him it was impossible, but he knew he had to try anyway.

The _Destiny _was soon sailing across the ocean as fast as it could possibly move. Olose could hear the roar of cannons off in the distance, and smell the burnt gunpowder on the wind. The battle had already begun. The entire crew rushed to the deck, looking out as they saw the two fleets pounding each other, cannonballs flying and ripping apart the warships that populated the sea. The _Destiny _was dwarfed, every ship towering over her.

"Captain, are we going to turn back?" Phabrizoe asked as they approached. "Merchant ships are supposed to avoid combat."

"But combat etiquette says battle should not commence if a commercial ship is in the area." Grinned Olose. "We're going to cut across the middle. They should stop firing, or at least take notice."

"Isn't this plan a little risky?" Phabrizoe inquired.

"Would you have it any other way?" Olose smiled, spinning the wheel.

The _Destiny _tore across the waters, soaring into the middle of the skirmish, cannonballs impacting all around it. The ships instantly began to react.

"What the hell is that guy doing?" Came a cry from one ship.

"Cease fire!" Called another.

"We can't risk hitting a merchant vessel!"

"Get those god dammed civilians out of here!"

"Hold your fire!"

"Dammit! What is going on?"

Olose grinned at the various voices crying in confusion.

"Hoist the sail!" He ordered, and Suse and Nadia began lifting the sail, slowing the _Destiny _down.

"Get out of here, now!" Ordered a galka from one of Bastok's ships.

"No can do!" Olose shouted in response. "Been hit. Taking on water. We can't move until it's patched up."

"You're going to be killed in the crossfire!" An elvaan yelled from one of the San d'Orian ships.

"Not if you stop shooting." Olose yelled back.

"We will not stand down for one pathetic vessel! Move or you will be destroyed!" Threatened a hume captain.

"Hey, maybe you could just sort this out with words while we're here?" Olose suggested. There was a low grumbling. He heard plenty of people suggesting that they destroy the ship and be done with it.

"You can't stand in our way. There are even civilian causalities in war." Came a cry, and Olose could see it his plan wasn't going to work.

"Captain? Plan B?" Suggested Trevia.

"Seems so." Olose smiled.

"We have a plan B?" Nadia muttered.

"Hoist the flag!" Olose ordered.

"You mean that one with the smiley face I made?" Suse cried enthusiastically.

"No." Olose stated, gritting his teeth. "The other flag. The one will the skull. And the crossbones."

"Oooooh, that one!" Suse exclaimed. Trevia rolled her eyes.

"Ready the cannons! Bring down the sails!" Olose ordered. Trevia and Nadia began to prepare the cannons while Phabrizoe rose the flag and Suse managed to set the sail flying again.

The reactions on the ships were all ones of hostility.

"Pirates!" Came an almost joint snarl.  
"Fire!" Cried Olose, and the cannons blasted away, hitting warships on both sides.

"You're insane!" Phabrizoe decided.

"Captain! I think you have theirrrrr attention!" Trevia cried.

"Fantastic." Olose said rather blankly, trying to concentrate as he steered the ship, doubling back out of the fleet. They were all blasting at him. "Fire again!" Olose yelled as soon as he saw the cannons had been reloaded. The entire joint fleets began chasing the renegade pirate ship.

"Nice going Captain." Nadia smiled. "We've got two fleets of warships chasing us. Any idea where to take them?"

"I'm working on that part of the plan!" Olose replied.

"That's our Captain for you." Sighed Phabrizoe. Cannonballs impacted all around.

"We'rrrre not going to last long herrrre, Captain!" Trevia yelled. "We could head for the shorrrre. We have a lower keel. We can crrrrross the shallow water much easier."

"We need to run those ships aground." Olose agreed. "Once they are, they'll be useless. War diffused."

"They aren't stupid, Captain. They aren't going to follow you where they can't go." Nadia pointed out. Olose grumbled.

"Damn, this isn't exactly going to plan!" A cannonball hit the back of the _Destiny_, sending wooden shards flying everywhere. "Okay, I'm going to swing us across, get ready to fire!"

"Captain, we're too close to the shoreline! If you turn us to fire, we'll crash straight into the shore!" Phabrizoe pointed out, becoming frustrated that he was entirely left out of Olose's plan.

"Trust me." Olose smiled, spinning the wheel.

The _Destiny _arched across the waters, heading for the shore. As it turned, it opened an opportunity to fire at the two pursuing fleets. Cannonballs fired, hitting the warships, and enraging the captains of the warships even more. Pirates were universally hated on the sea, and they were now certain they'd do whatever they could to destroy the little ship. Olose spun the wheel again, and the ship creaked as it rocketed towards the shoreline.  
"We're not going to make it!" Nadia cried.

"We'rrre going to make it!" Trevia tried to reassure. Suse just screamed and curled up on deck. Phabrizoe couldn't pull his eyes away from the land. Olose gripped the wheel, spinning it. The ship was beginning to turn, rapidly approaching the cliff face that made up the edge of the coast. The ship was on a collision course. Olose kept turning the wheel, feeling the rudder lock. The ship slowly began to turn. He could almost feel the shallow seabed brushing against the bottom of the hull. The ship made the turn at the last moment, the bottom of the ship scraping along the ground.

"YES!" Olose cheered, repositioning the ship so that it was still fleeing from the enemy fleets. The ships continued to chase, but were staying out further than the _Destiny_ that was in too shallow for them to pursue. "Phabrizoe! Your up!" Phabrizoe ran to Olose.

"What do you need?" He asked.  
"Think you can land your most powerful ice spell in front of the fleet?" Olose asked, grinning.

"What?" Phabrizoe cried in disbelief.

"It'll force them to turn towards the shoreline." Olose explained. "They'll run aground."

"We need to gain on the ships first." Phabrizoe answered. "Or else I can't get it far enough on the right side to make them turn in shore."

"We need more speed!" Olose yelled to his crew. "Dump everything that's not needed!"

The crew began working frantically. Nadia quickly started throwing the cannonballs they had on deck overboard. Trevia disappeared below deck, reappearing with food barrels which she quickly unloaded. Suse preoccupied herself throwing any little items she could find overboard, like pieces of paper and writing instruments, which was very sweet, but utterly useless.

"Captain! We're still not fast enough!" Nadia told Olose.

"Dump the cannons! If this works, we won't need them!" Olose explained in answer.

"And if it doesn't?" Nadia asked, worried.

"Then we're all doomed." Olose answered. "Do it!" More cannonballs whizzed at the little pirate ship, one hitting and causing wooden shards to fly everywhere. Nadia and Trevia quickly threw the cannons into the ocean. The _Destiny _began to pull ahead of the other ships. Phabrizoe had been chanting for some time, preparing an incredibly powerful spell.

"Phabrizoe! Now!" Screamed Olose. Phabrizoe unleashed his spell, and the entire ocean before the war fleets became coated in ice. "YES! FANTASTIC!" Olose cried at the top of his voice as the ships scrambled to avoid their impending doom by hitting the newly formed ice. They turned inwards, towards land, some hitting each other, others running aground and ripping to a stop. The entire fleet grounded to a halt, crippled on the rocks. "YEEHAH!" Olose yelled at the top of his voice. Any ships that had avoided the trap narrowly avoided collision, and the crews had become so confused and panicked that the _Destiny _easily sailed away, heading back towards Seblina.

Olose ran down from the wheel smiling, looking over the unusually barren looking deck.

"We did it!" Suse cried triumphantly.

"What now, Captain?" Trevia asked, remaining calm, but a smile flickering showing her joy.

"Well, those ships are out of action. They're gonna have to work together to get out of that." Olose explained happily. "Bastok will be forced to pull out of Seblina, they don't have enough ships there to hold it. Everything should be quite on the naval front for a while. Bastok and San d'Oria will just have to fight their wars on land."

"We're going to be famous, Captain, you know that?" Nadia began. "We stopped a war, got two fleets of ships to chase us, and took them all out, technically speaking, all in this little ship. Tales of us will spread across the land. We'll be known as the greatest pirates of all time! And we didn't even pirate anything!" Olose's face fell grim.

"I have a very bad feeling about this." He said.

It took a good two weeks before Abaj Tuh heard of the exploits of the _Destiny._ At first he was mildly amused, until he heard the name.

"Captain Sampson." He repeated, his aide listening closely. He looked over a copy of the Vana'diel Tribune which had run an article on the battle. "Captain Olose Sampson."  
"It could be coincidence." His aide suggested.

"Silence fool. Of course it's not coincidence." Abaj snapped.

"Sir, with all due respect, the land is at war. Can this grudge not wait?" His aide asked as politely as possible.

"A fair comment." Abaj admitted. "You're fired." Abaj rapidly drew a sword and thrust it through his aide before his aide could react. "Olose Sampson must die. _I _am the last of werewolves, not that pathetic swashbuckler." He began to smile. "I wonder if Arcadia has missed me." He pondered, his subjects looking on curiously.


	20. Offers

**CHAPTER 20**

**OFFERS**

_Ship's Log 29: Our fame continues. We stop by any dock and everybody comes running just to catch a glimpse of the legendary Destiny, the ship that took out two entire fleets alone. The war behind Bastok and San d'Oria has actually quieted down, some say entirely to our actions. Mutual humiliation at their failure on the sea has made both sides rethink their strategies. Or at least chase every pirate ship on the waters._

_I've received another package from Arcadia. Apparently, and very oddly, Abaj has stopped everything. He hasn't made any action at all ever since the war broke out. Or, quite worryingly, since we interfered. I have a feeling that he's become aware of me, and so I've risked replying to Arcadia. I've told her to hide, at least until I'm sure that this isn't related to me._

_We do, at least, have a job. We're transporting cargo to a strange new port I wasn't even aware existed. It's called Mhaura, and appears to belong to Windurst. It seems they're beginning to open themselves to a world again a bit more, perhaps in shock at the war between Bastok and San d'Oria. All I know is we're getting paid, which means the job is fine by me._

Olose looked over his back at the wake behind the ship. It wasn't the first time.

"I think something's shadowing us." He decided to voice his concerns. Phabrizoe bolted up beside him and looked over him. There was a ship following them, just staying out of their wake.

"Hm. Looks to be pirates, Captain." Phabrizoe told him. "Pirates are the only ones that shadow ships like that."

"Yes, thank you, I know." Olose answered sarcastically. "We _are _pirates, remember?"

"For pirates, we do very little pirating." Nadia pointed out.

"That's hardly the point here." Olose sighed. "Shall we wait for them to board then?"

"Why wait?" Trevia asked. "We could just attack them rrrrright now."

"I just paid for new cannons, I don't want to risk them. It's easier to win on the ship." Olose explained. "Let's pretend we didn't notice them."

"They've hoisted the pirate flag." Phabrizoe pointed out.

"Guess we were right then." Olose shrugged. "Well, standard drill. Don't let them take anything. We'll defeat them, and then take anything they have on _their _ship. That should teach them a thing or two."

"What do you need Captain?" Trevia asked. "We going to fight?"

"No. Let them come aboard. We don't want to damage each other's ships. We'll beat them in melee combat once their on deck."

"Aye aye, Captain!" Suse saluted enthusiastically, clearing feeling left out of the conversation so making her input. "I'm rrrrrraising the sail!"

The _Destiny _came to a stop as the pirate shop drew up close to it. The pirates didn't react, it was usual for merchant vessels to stand down as soon as they saw the pirate flag, rather than risking capture or death, they'd hand over whatever goods they had. The pirates drew up aside, simply laughing. Olose casually folded his arms, waiting. It wasn't the first time they had run into pirates, it was a common occurrence on the seas. They swung onto the deck and Olose walked down wearingly.

"Captain Sampson. I'd of thought you would have put up a fight at least." Remarked the pirate leading the attack, the captain, Olose guessed. Olose didn't immediately register that the pirate knew his name, and instead shrugged.

"Who said I wasn't putting up a fight?" He asked, drawing his sword in a split second. The rest of his crew did so. The pirate laughed.

"You're out manned, Sampson. Stand down." The pirate grinned. This time Olose registered the use of his own name.

"If you know my name, you know what I'm famous for. I was out manned when I took down two entire fleets as well." He smirked.

"That was a combination of luck and strategy." The pirate remarked. "You have no such advantages here."

"Oh, I have one." Olose beamed.

"And what's that?" The pirate asked sceptically.

"I'm immortal." Olose grinned, kicking upwards powerfully. The pirate was caught completely off guard and flew backwards, falling completely off of the ship and landing with a splash. The crews erupted into combat.

Olose instantly spun around, fighting at incredible speed as he drove back the pirates all around him. Suse ran for cover, as they always taught her to when combat began. Trevia drew her katana and promptly began to attack with rapid, yet controlled strikes. Every hit was one firm strike, taking down an opponent. Her training shone through, only attacking when she knew she could get a finishing blow. Nadia had drawn her rapier in her one hand, and was duelling one of the pirate members. She dodged under his blows and hit him in the chest. The pirate staggered back. Another ran in at her but was taken out by a massive fireball from Phabrizoe. Nadia gave a nod of thanks and continued to battle another.

Olose had already managed to get a hold of a second sword, and now used the two blades to make short work of anybody who got near him. Another pirate ran in, but he spun around, using both swords and his incredible strength to knock the pirate's weapon clean from his hands. The pirate watched as his sword flew away, and gulped. Olose smiled, grabbing him and throwing him overboard.

There was a sudden loud thud on the deck. Olose spun around to see a huge galka sneering at him. The galka was unarmed, but took up a monk's fighting stance, and beckoned Olose to attack.

"Okay, I'm game." Olose smiled, throwing down his swords and running at the galka. A punch came in powerfully towards Olose, but he ducked under it. The galka brought it back towards him in a back fist, and Olose back flipped over it, delivering a straight strike into the galka's ribcage. He felt the ribs break away from his opponent's spine as he made contact and the galka howled in pain, dropping forwards. This gave Olose the ideal opportunity to hit him to the face, enough to take the mighty pirate out.

A sword suddenly pierced Olose's chest from behind. He laughed, spinning around and hitting his attacker. A strong looked elvaan girl, but she went down with his one punch. Olose had hit so hard he wasn't convinced she was going to get back up. He reached around, pulling the sword out of his chest and watching as his wound healed. He grinned at two pirates who had been about to attack him, but were clearly now having second thoughts. They suddenly both yelped in pain, and ran. Suse was stood behind them, smiling, with two daggers in each of her hands.

"Suse!" Olose cried. "What happened to you getting to cover?"

"Oh, you neverrrr let me have any fun!" She protested. Olose sighed, smiling slightly.

"Captain! I think they're retreating!" Nadia called. Olose nodded.

"Let's not let them. Attack!" Olose ran, grabbing one of the boarding ropes and swinging across to the pirate ship. The others quickly followed and the battle began once more.

This time it was much shorter. Olose landed and attacked instantly, not waiting for the pirates to have a chance to ready themselves. None of them had been expecting for a crew of five to launch a fully blown attack on them, and so were completely caught off guard. Olose made short work of the immediate pirates, the few that luckily landed blows becoming horrified as they realised there weapons were totally ineffective. They tried to regroup, but lightning roared down from the sky, striking them, as Phabrizoe summoned his attack. They stumbled in confusion, and it was mere moments before they threw down their weapons, surrendering. The _Destiny _crew gave a cheer, spinning and sheathing their weapons as the pirates sunk to their knees, admitting their defeat.

"We did it!" Suse cried cheerfully, hugging Trevia in joy. Trevia just looked at her with an intense stare until she let go. "Um, sorrrry." She mumbled, scratching behind her head in embarrassment.

"Okay, usual drill. Nadia, you loot anything valuable in the Captain's cabin. Trevia, you go below decks and get whatever cargo is down there. The rest of us will keep an eye on our prisoners. Be careful, we don't know who's still on board! Don't go getting hurt, or anything."

"We won't, Captain." Sighed Nadia.

"We'll be rrrrright back!" Trevia assured him. The two went their separate ways, searching for any valuables.

Trevia wondered down into the hold and began looking around. She couldn't resist grinning as she saw a whole chest full of gold. She ran down to it, happily breaking her professional act with nobody around to see her, and began to fill her pockets with money. As long as she left some, she knew Olose would be utterly unaware there was any more, and she'd have gotten a bonus pay off.

"Quite a lot, isn't it." Came a voice. She spun around, startled, cursing herself for not noticing somebody else had been there. "Of course, it's nothing compared to what I'll pay you."

"Abaj Tuh!" She gasped. "What arrrre you doing herrrrre?" Abaj chuckled.

"I'd of thought it were obvious. You didn't think it was an ordinary pirate attack, did you?" Abaj answered casually. "Kill Olose." His voice suddenly turned grim and serious, delivering a firm order. "You know his weakness, and he'll never expect a thing."

"I won't betrrrray my Captain." Trevia growled. "Now leave."

"I'm offering you a large sum of money. More than you'll make working on that heap of junk in a lifetime. You'll be rich. You can retire, if you're that way inclined." Abaj offered.

"You know I'd never retirrre." Trevia sighed.

"That's good too. You'd have enough money to buy any equipment you wanted." Abaj pointed out. Trevia paused, considering it.

"I could tell Olose about you now, and you'll be dead." Trevia pointed out.

"Please. I can teleport from this ship and he'll never know I was here." Abaj laughed. "So, are you going to accept my offer or not?" Trevia paused, biting her lip in a way that she hoped Abaj wouldn't notice. It really betrayed her attitude of professional assassin.

Olose had grown tired of the pirates, and so chased them overboard. They had jumped into the water, fleeing his blade, and he decided that would keep them out of trouble, at least until they could scramble back onto the ship. Nadia had returned with a few valuables that Suse was helping her transport back to the _Destiny _while Olose and Phabrizoe waited for Trevia. She eventually emerged from the hold of ship, and smiled faintly at them. Olose suddenly had a feeling something was wrong, Trevia very rarely smiled, but decided to push his concerns aside until they were off the ship.

"Did you find anything?" Olose asked, realising Trevia was still silent.

"Yes." She answered blankly. "Um, yes. Gold. And plenty of food." She guiltily felt the gold in her pockets. "Herrrre's some I brought up to show you." Olose made a mental note of how she had never done that before either. He looked over the coins she had handed him.

"Seems genuine." He remarked, trying to downplay his suspicions that something was bothering Trevia. "We'll get it onto the _Destiny _and get out of here." He decided. Trevia nodded sheepishly, her mind clearly on other things.

It wasn't until they were safely away from the pirate ship and had been sailing for some time that Trevia approached Olose.

"Olose?" She asked, a slightly worried look on her face. "Can Phabrizoe take control of the ship please? I need to talk to you in prrrivate."

"Sure, Trevia." Olose had already guessed something was wrong, so instantly agreed. "Phabz! Get up here! You've got the wheel!" Olose cried, before gesturing for Trevia to follow him down to his cabin. Trevia did so, but unusually slowly and seemed unusually hunched in on herself.

Olose didn't look back at her, or raise his guard. It seemed he trusted her completely.

"What is it?" He asked, casually slipping off his crimson jacket and hanging it up in the corner of the cabin. Trevia struggled, trying to make a decision. His trust in her was foolish, but touching. He believed in her. Nobody had ever believed in her before. She suddenly found herself asking a question she had never thought she would ask: why did she need money anyway? She faltered, trying to force her arm to reach for her silver dagger but failing. She couldn't do it. She couldn't kill her captain.

"Abaj was on that boat." She confessed, releasing her arm and letting the tension flow out of her body. She couldn't kill him, but she could help him.

"What?" Olose exclaimed, genuinely shocked and caught off guard. He had seen many problems among his crew, and had expected Trevia to be worried about a family issue or something similar. Abaj had been the last thing he was expecting.

"He wanted me to kill you." Trevia explained. "He offerrrred me a lot of money."

"And you accepted?" Olose guessed.  
"No! No! Captain, I would never-" Trevia began, panicked.

"It's okay." He answered. "I understand. Let's admit it, Abaj wouldn't have let you walk away had you said no." He smiled slightly. "Besides, I know you accepted."

"How?" Trevia asked.

"You called me Olose up on deck. I thought that until you were no longer under my employ, I was your captain." He smirked. Trevia sighed.

"I was just tense. Worrrrried." She tried to explain.

"I'm glad you changed your mind, Trevia." Olose told her.

"I never serrrriously considerrrred it." Trevia answered, blushing slightly.

"I know you didn't." Olose grinned. "But I don't think you know that. You're my friend Trevia, and I'd never count among my friends somebody who would betray me." Trevia seemed genuinely touched. She had never had a friend before. She had always been absorbed in her own work. She managed a smile.

"Thank you Captain." She said in reply. "Olose." She added, trying to break down her professional act. "But what about Abaj?" She quickly asked. "This is serious!"

"I very much doubt he intended for you to kill me." Olose guessed. Trevia awkwardly fiddled with her sleeves, knowing he was right. He would have just defeated her again. "Probably more to stall me. I don't think he counted on you having discovered friendship, and thought you'd carry out your orders, which means he thinks I'm stalled fighting you. And then spending time afterwards mourning the loss of a friend, as I would." Trevia looked to the floor, blushing, not sure how to feel at the thought Olose would mourn her. "Which gives us the advantage!"

"What do you think he's planning?" Trevia asked gently, still a little confused by the new feeling of friendship she had.

"He must be going after Arcadia. I assume he had a teleport spell of some kind on that boat, meaning we're going to have to move incredibly fast." Olose decided. He ran out of the cabin and Trevia stood, dazed for a moment, before following.

Olose looked up to Phabrizoe, who was confidently handling the ship's wheel, despite the fact that it was far too big for him.

"Phabz! Turn around!" Cried Olose. "We're going back to Seblina!"

"What? Why?" Phabrizoe asked, already obeying, knowing that Olose must have a good reason.

"Abaj knows about us and is going after Arcadia! We need to reach Tavnazia as soon as possible!" Olose explained.

"That's hell of a trip on land." Phabrizoe told him. "We'll never make it in time."

"We might be able to cut him off." Olose decided. He knew how to reach Abaj in time, but it was something he had never been able to do. When he had fought Abaj, Abaj had transformed into his werewolf form at his own freewill. If Olose could do that, he could move so much faster, and be more powerful. He knew it was Arcadia's only hope.

Abaj would use her to hurt him. Olose just hoped he would use her as a lure first, giving him a chance to save her. But he knew that Abaj would kill Arcadia before he killed Olose to provide the maximum amount of pain for Olose. Olose gulped, looking at the waves tearing past the ship.

He began to pray that he wasn't too late.

**Author's Note: Just a little warning and an apology, I may not be able to update tomorrow, as it's my friend's eighteenth birthday and I'm going to be pretty busy making a present for him (yes, I said making, long story) and then actually going to a party he's having, being out pretty late. I'll do my best to write something, but I might not be able to get it done. So sorry about that, but I may end up missing an update.**

**Which is annoying, since this is my first cliffhanger in a while!**


	21. Destiny

**Author's Note: I know people get annoyed when I put myself down, but this chapter really needs an apology. I knew I said I wouldn't do one today, but found time and managed to write this, an unusually short one, but it's written. The idea is that instead of it being a full story flowing chapter, it more hypes up the finale of the Abaj plotline by having Olose reflect on things (in a way that's horribly melodramatic, I can't write drama either it seems). Not to say that important plot points don't happen here, there's a few (well, two), but the idea is that it's more of a teaser, and so that I managed to update. The title also meant I could tie back into the name of the ship that Olose has been on for all this time, which isn't something I had planned, but it actually fitted in quite well, I think.**

**Anyway, sorry for the short chapter. I need to stop doing those! Should be back to normal tomorrow!**

**CHAPTER 21**

**DESTINY**

The _Destiny _pulled into the Seblina docks to a huge gathering crowd, all eager to get one look at the now legendary ship and her crew. Olose rushed off the deck, pushing past the group of people, his mind on other things. The group looked confused, they heard of Olose as the legendary captain who defeated an armada, but was still kind and caring. They saw none of it here. He seemed possessed by a single goal, something he had to achieve. He marched towards the edge of Seblina, a single focused look on his face.

Nadia ran after him, pushing through the crowd with determination.

"Olose!" She cried. "Olose! Wait!" He stopped, spinning around, looking almost angry.

"What? We don't have much time." He stated fiercely.

"What are we going to do? There's no way we can reach Abaj in time!" Nadia explained. "Not even by chocobo."

"Not for a mortal." Olose answered. "But a werewolf. A werewolf can move across terrain at incredible speeds."  
"It's not a full moon!" Nadia protested. "You can't turn into a werewolf."

"Oh no, that's where you're wrong." Olose laughed, almost sounding insane. "I can. And I will! I've seen Abaj do it. If Altana ever shines on me, let it be now." Olose shut his eyes, as if in deep thought.

He could hear Nadia speaking, but he couldn't make out the words. He felt his pulse quicken as he focused on his heart, each beat becoming faster and faster. Arcadia was in trouble. He was all that could save her. Images of Talia flashed across his mind. Memories of him ripping her apart in his werewolf form. He could not let that happen again. He could control his curse, he knew he could. He began to feel his blood boil, those images of him ripping apart Talia began to change. He could see Abaj. Abaj had killed the werewolves, he had ended their race and left Olose alone. It was Abaj who had caused him to come to that town, to meet Talia, and to kill her. It was Abaj's fault, and now he was repeating his crimes! He had lost Talia, and he was not going to lose Arcadia. He was not.

The rest of the _Destiny's _crew caught up with Olose just as he seemed to explode, howling at the sky as his muscles exploded, growing to immense size. His face began to twist, elongating and becoming that of a wolf. He grew to a gigantic size, towering over them, his clothes being ripped apart. He stood there before them and howled, having fully transformed into a werewolf. The crew were stunned, and more than slightly frightened. Suse, rather amusingly, tried to hide being Phabrizoe, to no effect. Olose howled again.

"Wow." He growled. "I'm in control." He stood there for a moment. "I can control my form. Now, I can fight Abaj. Now, I can save Arcadia." He turned, and suddenly disappeared, sprinting across the land, leaving the crew in shock.

They stood there frozen for a moment.

"What arrrre we waiting forrrr?" Trevia suddenly asked, as if it was matter of fact. "We have to help the Captain! We need to get chocobos, we'll be slowerrrr, but we can still catch up with him if we trrrry!" The crew all turned to Trevia, slightly surprised. "What? He's our Captain! We have to help him!" She paused. "And he's my frrrrriend." The word seemed strange to say, but Trevia felt the same warmth saying it she had felt back in Olose's cabin.

"She's right!" Nadia cried. "We need to help Olose! We're his crew, and we'll follow him to the end of the planet, right?"

"Right!" Suse cheered enthusiastically.

"I'm going to regret this." Phabrizoe sighed. "But where the Captain goes, I follow."

"Right! Let's move then!" Nadia ordered, and the crew ran towards the nearest source for chocobos.

Olose sped across the grounds, literally leaving a trail of dust behind him. The speeds he could reach were incredible, and he shot past many travellers who were left dazed by the dust left behind. He could see Tavnazia in his head. His ultimate goal. He was too late, he knew, but he could stop Abaj leaving, and stop him harming Arcadia, if he was lucky. Luck hadn't been on his side, he had been plotting to strike against Abaj, and instead everything had been reversed. But he wasn't going to give in. Not this time. He wasn't going to live in fear. He was immortal. He couldn't die. He was going to stop Abaj once and for all, and with his new ability to transform at will, he knew that he had a chance. He knew that he could defeat him. He knew he would have to. Arcadia's life depended on it. And he was sure Abaj wouldn't stop at Arcadia, but once she was dead, he'd kill every last person Olose cared about to hurt him as badly as possible. Olose couldn't let that happen. He swore. He would kill Abaj Tuh.

It was his destiny.


	22. Dawn

**CHAPTER 22**

**DAWN**

Olose arrived at Tavnazia just as the sun was rising in the early morning. He breathed calmly and slowly, relaxing his mind. Slowly he felt his muscles compact, the fur begin to turn inwards, into his body and his face and body shrinking becoming human once more. He stood for a moment, calmly, his eyes closed, until he felt that he was fully human again. He began to walk into the city, before realising he was completely naked. He quickly reacted by pulling down a nearby flag and wrapping it around himself, and hurried towards Arcadia's estate.

He ran in the door to see Andrew reacting with a shocked glare.

"Who the hell are you?" He cried. Olose paused for a moment in confusion.

"It's me! Olose!" He explained. Andrew's face erupted in shock.

"Olose?" He bellowed. "About time you got here!"

"Damn. I'm too late, aren't I?" Olose spat.

"He took her in the night." Andrew explained. "The authorities tried to stop him, but he killed them all." Olose paused, angrily.

"Did he say where he went?" Olose inquired quickly.

"No. But there was a message in her room, addressed to you." Andrew told him, and Olose shot up the stairs quickly, without saying anything else.

He ran into Arcadia's room and spotted the note instantly. He held it up and began to read.

_Olose. I know you'll come. And I know you think I'll kill Arcadia. Rest assured, she will die, but you will watch. I shall make you. You shall see her die, and then I shall kill you._

_This is truly the twilight of the immortal. Our final days. For that, there is only one location._

Olose paused. He knew exactly where he had gone. He scrunched up the note angrily and began to leave, before spotting something. Hanging up in front of Arcadia's bed, like a reminder of who he had been. Olose's old battered brown jacket. He smiled. He quickly slipped it on, and grabbed some clothes (old clothes of his own, that apparently Arcadia had never had the heart to remove). He slipped into the torn and beaten black trousers, and the old, dirty white shirt, threw his jacket on and left.

Andrew watched as Olose burst out of the house, looking much like he used to, despite the different face. He made a silent prayer that he would return safely, with Arcadia at his side.

Olose ran down the path and swung quickly into the nearest armoury, grabbing a sword and rushing into the darkness. He could assume his werewolf form, but he would loose his gear and he didn't have time for that. He could run quickly anyway, and he knew the way better than he knew the path anywhere. He rushed across the fields, disappearing from the view of all.

Andrew sat down awkwardly in his home, knowing now that he could but wait. He sat like that for well over an hour, when suddenly a group of people burst into his house. He rose quickly in shock.

"Damn. He's not here." Nadia grumbled. Andrew looked over the gathered group of rogues in shock.

"Have you seen the Captain?" Phabrizoe quickly asked a shocked and confused Andrew.

"Captain?" Andrew asked curiously.

"Yes! Captain Sampson!" Phabrizoe sighed, rolling his eyes.

"O-Olose?" Andrew stammered, still clearly puzzled. "He's gone after my daughter, Lady Arcadia. She's been kidnapped."

"Damn." Spat Nadia.

"H-He looked at a note left by the kidnapper, and then left. I can't figure out the location from it, but he clearly could." Andrew tried to explain, despite being baffled. "Who are you?"

"We'rrrre his crew." Smiled Suse.

"Right. Check that note!" Nadia ordered. Trevia nodded.  
"I'm on it." She said, rushing up the stairs.

"We have to be able to figure out where he's gone from it. We have to find him." Nadia explained.

"What are you going to do?" Andrew asked.

"We have this." Nadia smiled, pulling out a long silver spear. "Abaj is immortal, like Olose. Only this can kill him."

"If Abaj gets a hold of that-" Andrew warned.

"We know." Phabrizoe snapped. "We won't mess up."

"Found the note!" Cried Trevia, running down the stairs. "I can't figurrrre it out. It says something about being at the one place that suits the twilight of the immortal. Wherrrrrre could that be?" The crew paused, looking puzzled.

"Oh come on! It's obvious!" Suse suddenly chimed in. The others slowly turned to stare at Suse in shock. Nobody could quite believe she'd of figured anything out on her own. "Abaj and Olose arrrre werrrrewolves. So their immorrrrrtal. Abaj is planning to make this theirrrr final battle, so the twilight of the immorrrrrtal. And wherrrrre would they do that? The one location that's imporrrrtant to them. Abaj told me all about it. I know wherrrre they arrrre."

Olose came to a stop for a moment, in reflection. He was stood on the same path where he had first met Arcadia. He smirked to himself, it had been hot lately and the ground was solid. Arcadia would prefer that, he knew, compared to the circumstances they first met in. He paused, in reflection and thought. Arcadia was in trouble, and he wasn't entirely certain he could find her quickly enough. He bolted up the same bank they had scrambled up to get away from the path and paused, a grin on his face. He could smell her scent. She was definitely alive. And, judging by the direction of it, exactly where he thought she was.

Arcadia shuffled awkwardly, the tight robes rubbing against her bare shoulders. She struggled a bit, and gave up with a grunt. She felt like she was getting rope burn, and that was all she needed. She was tied to a pole that Abaj had erected in a large and empty cave. She had no idea why she was being held in that specific cave, or how she had got there. Her head hurt, badly. She had been knocked unconscious, a particularly nasty sensation considering she wasn't really used to taking blows. She moved her head gently to follow Abaj, trying not to move it too fast in case the pounding got any worse. Abaj was pacing up and down in the cave, clearly deep in thought about something. He was now wearing heavy black metal armour, presumably some kind of back up against Olose, which Arcadia didn't fully understand, as she expected him just to turn into his werewolf form anyway. She liked the idea that it was to protect him from her, in case she had woken up before they reached the cave, but had to admit that it was unlikely. She tried to move again, letting out a small grunt as she felt the rough ropes rub against her own smooth skin. Her grunt gained the attention of Abaj, who turned around, laughing.

"Sit tight, sweetheart, it'll all be over soon." He grinned manically.

"I am sure it will be." She muttered. Abaj walked, lighting some torches to brighten the otherwise very dark cave.

"Convenient that the torches are still here." He observed. "The elvaans ripped everything else to pieces."

"What is this place?" Arcadia asked, deciding if she couldn't escape she should at least make conversation.

"My old home." Abaj smiled. "Home of the werewolves. Our last refuge, as it were. Olose escaped from here, that's why he hung around in the woods in this area. That's also why that village nearby got destroyed so many years ago. You're hero Olose is a murderer."

"Olose would never do that!" Arcadia cried defiantly.

"Oh, I think you know that he really did." Abaj smiled.

"It was not his fault." Arcadia stated, frustrated. Olose had come clean about that particular story a long time ago.

"And that makes it acceptable?" Abaj questioned. "I know you people of a higher class usually miss the suffering of us lowly peasants, but you're morals are seriously questionable."

"How dare you?" Arcadia cried. "You! Of all people! You're a murderer."

"Yes, yes. I know." Abaj laughed. "I killed this lot." He held his hands out around the cave. "Well, at least betrayed their location. Now, nobody can harm me, and I can rise through the ranks without effort. Hence how I became such a powerful crime lord. Nobody could defy me. Being the last of the werewolves has its advantages."

"Only one problem!" Came a cry. "You aren't the last one!"

Abaj spun around to see Olose Sampson stood defiantly in the cave entrance.

"Olose!" Arcadia cried out in joy.

"Sampson. Pleased to see you." Abaj smiled. "Like the new face. I'll make sure I do more than just rip it off this time."

"This ends here, Abaj." Olose growled.

"I couldn't agree more." Abaj grinned. "I'll kill the girl, then kill you."

"If you harm her, your life is forfeit." Olose warned.

"I was under the impression we were going to duel to the death anyway." Abaj laughed.

"Dammit Abaj! You've taken everything from me! You betrayed our race and had them wiped out, you caused me to grow up without them, it was _you _who led to the destruction of my home and family." And Talia, but he kept that silent. "And then you do this. For what? Revenge? Revenge for what? Because I defeated you once? You gave up without a fight! If you were so high and mighty, you could have fought your way out, being immortal."

"Boy, I had my reasons." Snarled Olose. "Do you really think the higher up powers in this world don't know what I am? Those troops outside were carrying silver weapons, and I find I work much more effectively alive. Thanks to you I lost my empire, my money and three years of my life!"

"You replaced it quickly enough." Olose spat. "Yet thanks to you I lost my family, my foster family, my entire village, every last friend I had, and the girl I cared for the most!"

"You replaced _that _quickly enough." Abaj countered with a grin, wrapping his hand around Arcadia's neck. She froze, even her heart felt as if it had stopped beating.

"You've taken enough from me, Abaj. Spare her." Olose tried to sound calm, hiding his boiling rage.

"No." Abaj stated, beginning to tighten his grip. He was slightly surprised when an arrow thudded into his back. He turned around to see Olose having drawn a bow and shot him. Olose smiled. He had picked it up when he grabbed a sword, and strapped it to his back, under his jacket. "You're a reasonable shot with that thing, boy. Been practicing?"

"A bit. They come in useful." Olose answered casually. Abaj removed the arrow from his back. Olose fired again, but this time missed.

"I apologise. I was mistaken." Abaj smirked. "Clearly you are not a reasonable shot. You missed."

"No I didn't." Olose shouted back. Abaj turned to see Arcadia raise to her feet, the ropes that had tied her to the pole broken by the arrow. Abaj grabbed her, pulling her around in front of him.

"What now, boy?" He cried over her shoulder. "Will you shoot at me, risking hitting her?" He grinned evilly.

"Yes." Olose answered confidently, much to Abaj's surprise. He fired the arrow and hit Abaj square in the face. Abaj cried in shock, and Arcadia ran from him, reaching Olose. Abaj ripped the arrow out of his own jaw, and his face healed quickly, leaving just a stain of blood. Despite her adrenaline, Arcadia was beginning to feel quite queasy. Abaj ran to get her, but Olose drew his sword. Abaj drew his too, and the two clashed weapons.

Abaj was clearly trying to fight to Arcadia, but Olose attacked quickly, frequently hitting Abaj to no effect. His hits at least kept Abaj way from Arcadia, but Olose knew he couldn't win in a sword fight. It was impossible. Abaj seemed quite skilled with a sword, moving quickly and jabbing into Olose as often as Olose jabbed into him. The two swung at each other, and grabbed each others arms. Olose and Abaj wrestled, spinning in a circle as they tried to get the other to drop their sword. Abaj suddenly kicked outwards, catching Olose in the chest and sending him sprawling to the ground. Olose crashed down with a thud, but quickly went into a back roll, coming up on one knee and firing another arrow. He hit Abaj in the chest, which stalled him for a second.

"Run!" Olose commanded. Arcadia nodded, knowing that she was more of a danger to Olose sticking around. She had come to terms with her existence as a bargaining chip for Abaj, and was determined not to give him that choice. She fled as Olose grabbed his sword and hit Abaj back, stopping him from following Arcadia.

Olose turned to make sure Arcadia was safely gone, feeling Abaj slice him across the back as he did. He came back to do it again and Olose blocked that from behind, spinning around and slicing at Abaj's head. Abaj blocked the blow and stabbed Olose. Olose retaliated by stabbing Abaj. The two paused for a moment, and drew each other's swords out of their chests. Olose ran in, blocking away Abaj's sword and hitting him with an elbow to the face. Abaj went down to the floor, and looked up with a grin.

"So what now, Olose Sampson? Are we to be two immortals locked in an epic battle until judgement day and the trumpets sound?"

"Oh no. Rest assured, you _will _die Abaj." Olose countered, swinging down at Abaj. Abaj blocked overhead and then sliced across Olose's legs. Olose jumped backwards as his wounds healed and spun his sword. Abaj held his out, ready to duel further.

"A lucky slice across the head and you will be dead." Abaj reminded his enemy.

"The same goes for you." Olose said calmly, tightening his grip on his sword.

"Then either one of us can win." Abaj smiled, knowing that he still had the ace of his transformation up his sleeve. He was still unaware that Olose had gained the same ability.

"It will be me, Abaj. You will pay for everything you've done, _with your life!_". Olose lunged at Abaj and the duel began once more.

**Author's Note: Sorry to be a pain and leave a cliffhanger in the middle of the battle, but it was always my intention to have the battle in the next chapter. There's actually more of it here than intended.**

**Oh, and I'd like to point out the line "So what now, Olose Sampson? Are we to be two immortals locked in an epic battle until judgement day and the trumpets sound?" is blatantly stolen from Pirates of the Caribbean (I love that movie!) with the line "So what now, Jack Sparrow, are we to be two immortals locked in an epic battle 'til judgment day and the trumpets sound?" (can you see I've watched that film too much?), which is basically the same. Originally I even had Jack's counter of "Or you could surrender!" for Olose, but removed it because that was too much of a rip off, even for me.**

**I'm also aware that the dialogue between Olose and Abaj is truly terrible, especially before they fight. I wanted a dramatic, but drawn out exchange. Instead I ended up with a corny melodramatic bickering, so sorry about that. That went a bit wrong, but I can't really write it much better (I've said many times, I'm not very good at this) so I've had to keep it. But sorry for the poorness of that bit! Bit of a shame really, since it's pretty much the pivotal moment in the whole story so far…**


	23. The Twilight Of The Immortal

**Author's Note: A few things, this chapter didn't quite work. I did what I usually do, and had a chapter of the final battle between the hero/es and villain, but here because it was a sword fight/grapple there's no magical spells or cool moves I can rely on to make it more interesting, so I have a feeling it'll come across as a repetitive and dull chapter instead of the action packed finale it's supposed to be.**

**Also, quite worryingly, this chapter borders quite close to a mature rating I think. I really would prefer to keep this rated as teen, but it gets quite gory (past the stage which I'm comfortable writing), but I wanted to make it a really brutal fight. Might have gone over the top, though, so sorry about that, and hopefully it can stay as a teen. If people think I should change the rating though, I might have to.**

**To the extent that technically there's even nudity at a point where Olose 'detransforms' from being a werewolf, but in that case just imagine it as a camera angle from above the waist! It's not that bad in general, and probably should stay as a teen, which I hope it can. I don't particularly like it being gory, but it worked best that way.**

**Anyway, hope you enjoy, although it's rather unlikely considering this is a large amount of just plain fighting with a bit of plot and corny dialogue thrown in! Oh wait, I promised to stop putting myself down didn't I? Sorry! At least I updated slightly earlier today than I do usually.**

**CHAPTER 23**

**THE TWILIGHT OF THE IMMORTAL**

Olose ducked as Abaj swung, and blocked as he brought the blade back. He quickly swung downwards, catching Abaj on the shoulder. The sword clanged, scrapping off of Abaj's armour.

"That suit just slows you down, Abaj." Olose grinned. "It won't protect you from a clean cut to the head."

"No, but it looks cool." Abaj countered with a sinister smile. The two lunged at each other, their swords clashing. They came up close to each other, and instantly pushed away. They both flew backwards and landed. Olose spun his sword and charged. Abaj impaled him, dropping down and kicking him in the stomach, throwing Olose's body over his. Olose landed with a painful sounding thud, but instantly sprang back to his feet.

"This is my favourite jacket, dammit!" He cried, noticing that the blade had gone right through him, leaving a hole in his jacket. The wound, however, had instantly healed.

"Well, this is my favourite suit of armour." Abaj countered, pointing to a hole Olose had made earlier in the duel. Olose shrugged.

"Sorry, I was aiming for your head." He said casually, springing to his feet. Abaj instantly snapped back into combat, swinging wide for Olose's neck. Olose dropped straight back down, causing Abaj to swing over the top of him, and lunged upwards. His sword went straight through Abaj's neck, but was simply left impaled there. Abaj stabbed downwards angrily, hitting Olose in the arm. Olose pulled the sword out of his arm so that it could heal, giving Abaj enough time to get the blade out of his own throat. The two sprang back up, their wounds closing, and held their swords out once more. They were now back in possession of the blades they started the fight with, at least.

The two immortals paused for a moment, considering the futility of the fight. Abaj lunged, hoping to catch Olose off guard. He blocked the blow heading for his neck and sliced downwards, catching Abaj's leg. He used this as a distraction to bring his own sword up and around towards Abaj's head, but Abaj managed to block this attack. Abaj jabbed his hilt forwards, hitting Olose in the face. Olose staggered back and watched as a wide sweep came in. He jumped back, getting slit across the throat, but managing to not be killed. The wound healed, leaving just the mass flow of blood staining his shirt. He cursed under his breath, realising how close he came to losing. He spun his blade and attacked again.

This time he drove Abaj back, and Abaj was left blocking wildly as Olose swung in with angry strikes. Abaj stumbled back into a cave tunnel, and Olose continued his attacks, his blade clashing off of the cave walls, causing sparks to fly. He swung down overhead, and Abaj managed a firm block before slicing Olose's kneecaps. Olose stumbled back and Abaj attacked, causing Olose to find himself on the defensive. He quickly adapted, blocking Abaj's sword down and tackling him with full force. The two tumbled to the ground. Olose hit Abaj in the face as hard as he could, shattering Abaj's nose. Abaj roared, throwing Olose off with a massive show of strength, and Olose crashed down at the end of the tunnel, now opening out into another wide cave. Abaj rose up, now with both swords. Olose took a fighting stance, despite being unarmed.

Abaj swung in the two swords in a v-shape, aiming for Olose's neck. Olose ducked under the blades and drove upwards in an upper cut. He caught Abaj in the jaw and Abaj was sent reeling. He crashed down, losing his grip on one of the swords. He reached for it, but Olose kicked it away. It skidded across the ground, out of his reach. Abaj swung with the remaining sword, and Olose stepped into it, blocking his arms. He grabbed hold of both of Abaj's arms and threw him over his shoulder. Abaj crashed down and the sword clattered away. He went for it, but Olose struck him in the back of the head. Abaj spun around, throwing a punch and hitting Olose. Olose staggered back as Abaj elbowed him in the face, and then rose upwards in the a kick, hitting him the chest. Olose stumbled back against the edge of the cave. Abaj began pounding Olose in the face, and Olose took the blows, reaching for an arrow from his back. He managed to get to it, and stabbed Abaj in the heart with it. Abaj stumbled back in surprise. Olose hit him the face, and Abaj stumbled back further. Olose threw another punch, and Abaj blocked it, before moving in and head butting Olose.

Meanwhile, Arcadia rushed through the tunnels, and found herself at the entrance. She paused, looking back into the tunnel. The sound of swords clashing had faded. She waited for a moment, too worried to leave. She couldn't walk away and leave Olose. She simply couldn't. She knew that while she was around, she was much more of a threat to Olose than her not being there, she knew that Abaj would just try and get hold of her and threaten her, but she simply could not let him die. She couldn't take the risk that the moment in the caves, that moment of blind panic when she had run, was the last time she would ever see Olose Sampson alive. She turned around. Determined to interfere. Determined to save Olose and make sure Abaj died.

"Ah ha! I told you it was herrrre!" Came a voice. Arcadia spun around in surprise. Reinforcements had arrived.

Abaj cross blocked Olose's punch and swept his legs away, causing Olose to crash down. Olose spotted one of the swords on the ground and grabbed it, hurling it at Abaj. It hit Abaj in the chest, who pulled it out and threw it back at Olose. Olose caught it out of the air and swung it at Abaj. Abaj ducked under the blade, and then jumped over as Olose swung it back in. Olose brought it up, slicing across Abaj's body, tearing through his armour. He kicked upwards, knocking Abaj over. Abaj rolled to the side as Olose brought his sword down, and it clanged against the stone floor. Abaj rose to his feet with a chuckle.

"Let's stop delaying the inevitable shall we?" He offered, and roared, letting out an ear-piercing howl as he took his werewolf form. Black fur spurted out from his massive body, his face elongated and his tail formed, and his eyes became a deep shade of hateful red. The armour he had been wearing simply stretched with his form, keeping even his werewolf body protected. Olose realised why he was wearing it, a back up in case Olose got lucky. He let out another howl. "So now, Olose Sampson, you die!" He growled.

"I don't think so!" Olose countered, slipping out of his jacket before letting out a cry of anger and bursting into his own werewolf form, throwing down the sword. He was smaller than Abaj's form, and his eyes were a deep brown instead of a red, with his fur a gently shade of grey, not the soulless black Abaj was.

"Boy, you cannot win." Laughed Abaj through his wolf's jaw. "A werewolf draws upon hatred, anger, what the gods consider to be evil acts. That is why I knew the true path to power while the rest of the werewolves were killed. That is why I am more powerful than you ever will be!"  
"Power has nothing to do with it!" Olose spat. "Good will triumph, you may be faster, you may be stronger, but I have to win. I fight for somebody. For a lot of people. I will _not _let them down!"

"Let us see if that is true." Abaj laughed, and the two wolves leapt at each other.

They grappled to the floor, Olose and Abaj tearing at each other. Olose ripped into Abaj's armour with his mighty claws, peeling off the shoulder armour, and hitting Abaj with it. Abaj howled, and dug his claws into Olose's flesh, throwing him off. Olose crashed against the ceiling, and came back down with a hail of rocks. The roof caved in, and the two werewolves swung to the side, dodging the fallen rocks. Abaj leapt over the pile and tackled Olose, hitting him in the face and clawing at him. Olose bit into Abaj's arm, and Abaj let out a howl, pulling back. He swung in with a mighty clawed attack, catching Olose in the face and sending him reeling. Abaj sprung on top of Olose, and grabbed his jaw, beginning to stretch it open, trying to break it. Olose tried to howl, but couldn't. He curled his legs up, and dug the claws on his feet into Abaj's chest, kicking outwards and sending him flying. Abaj crashed against the stone wall and fell down, rocks crumbling around him. Olose rose up, grabbing his sword and throwing it. It hit Abaj in the chest. Olose moved in, grabbing the other sword and hurling it also. That also hit Abaj, causing him to growl in anger. He pulled the swords out and threw them back at Olose. One hit Olose in the shoulder, but he managed to avoid the other. Olose pulled the sword out and hurled it along the ground. Abaj jumped over it, leaping towards Olose once more. Olose leapt to meet him, and the two warriors crashed into each other in the air and fell to the ground. Olose scratched Abaj across the chest as Abaj bit into Olose's tail.

Olose quickly reverted to his human form, causing Abaj to lose his grip on Olose's tail. He quickly scampered out from under Abaj's bulk, who was now puzzled looking for the much smaller hume. Olose managed to find the sword that had been aimed for him earlier, but missed, and grabbed it off of the floor. He ran at Abaj, and stabbed him in the chest. Abaj howled as Olose burst back into his werewolf form and clawed Abaj across the face. Abaj stumbled backwards, and Olose wrapped his clawed hands around the hilt of the sword, ripping the blade out upwards, tearing through Abaj. He swung in with the sword, slicing Abaj's face and body as the evil werewolf stumbled back. Olose threw down the blade and continued to attack with his claws in rage, slashing at Abaj's face and throat. Abaj stumbled back blindly. He pinned Abaj against the wall and struck over and over again at his face. He spotted an opening and instantly dug one of his long claw like fingers into Abaj's eye. He tore out Abaj's eye and Abaj howled in agony. He threw Abaj to the floor and let out a roar. Abaj looked up, blinded, as his wound attempted to heal. Olose ran in and kicked Abaj back. Abaj stumbled away and Olose began clawing once more at his face, trying to land a fatal blow.

Abaj opened his eyes, feeling them regenerated and let out a cry of rage, blocking Olose's claws with his own. He swung upwards, catching Olose's jaw and knocking him back. Olose landed as Abaj came in, now on the offensive and full of rage. He kicked Olose in the chest, knocking him into the air, and then slammed him into the ground. Olose howled in pain. Abaj picked up Olose, striking him to the face over and over again. Olose staggered back as Abaj drove his claws into Olose's chest, and ripped out a chunk of flesh. Olose screamed in agony, dropping forwards. His wounds began to heal, but it was too late. Abaj stamped down on his neck with his clawed foot, and Olose became pinned underneath it. He could feel Abaj's claws digging in and he growled in pain. It would take just one quick swipe to finish him off, severing his head and killing the last immortal on the side of good. Olose looked up at Abaj's hate filled red eyes.

"So, boy, now you see that you could not win." Abaj laughed. "You're pathetic hope has ended. You will die and my revenge will be complete." He chuckled to himself, his wolf-like face warping into an evil grin. "Although I might just take Arcadia for myself, just to sweeten the deal."

"You dare-" Olose growled from the floor.

"And you'll what?" Abaj laughed. "Olose. This is where you die, and I shall finally be the last of the immortals!"

"Never!" Came a cry from the entrance.

"What?" Abaj spun around to see the _Destiny_ crew stood, with Arcadia by their side. The distraction was enough. Olose sprang to his feet and kicked Abaj. Abaj was sent reeling.

"No! You!" Abaj snarled at the _Destiny _crew.

"It's over Abaj!" Nadia yelled.

"You all dare to stand against me?" Abaj bellowed.

"What can I say?" Trevia shrugged. "You'rrrre offerrrr wasn't good enough."

"I offered you more money than your feeble mind could even imagine!" Spat Abaj.

"Frrrrriendship is more imporrrtant than money." Trevia answered defiantly.

"You can't beat us all, Abaj." Phabrizoe warned.

"Oh, and I guess you showed them here." Abaj grumbled at Suse. Suse smiled.

"I'm just glad I rrrrremembered the way." She said softly.

"Surrender, and you can still live." Arcadia warned, not wanting to kill unless it was absolutely necessary.

"Bah. I am immortal. You _cannot _kill me. I will finish with this pup, and then I shall kill every one of you!" Abaj laughed. Nadia unsheathed the silver spear and passed it to Trevia behind her back.

"I won't let you harm them, Abaj!" Olose roared.

"You can't stop me, boy!" Abaj yelled. "All they've achieved is that I can kill everybody you cared about! Destroy every last one! They shall all die for crossing me! The great Abaj Tuh!"

"Olose!" Cried Trevia, hurling the silver spear. Olose caught it out of the air, his hands burning as he held it. He let out a cry of anger and pain, and thrust it at Abaj, impaling the evil crime lord and pinning him to the cave wall. Abaj's eyes went wide, and he spluttered in pain, his flesh burning as the silver pierced his heart.

"No." He managed to whimper. "No. This can't be…"

"You've lost Abaj." Olose spat. "Now shut up and die." Abaj began to laugh, moving his hand to an unusually large bulge on his armoured belt.

"I don't think so." He muttered, struggling to speak, blood oozing out of his mouth. He flicked open the bulge, turning out to be a hidden compartment. He held in his hand a small heavy looking black ball.

Olose's eyes went wide. He recognised it instantly. It was an explosive cannonball, albeit a smaller than usual one. Olose reacted quickly.

"Run!" He screamed, moving in and grabbed Abaj's hand that held the explosive, sealing his hand shut around it. The others retreated instantly, used to taking instant orders from their captain, except for Arcadia, who watched in shock. Nadia pulled her away. Abaj grinned.

"Even in death, I win Olose." He sneered.

"Goodbye Abaj." Olose shot back as the bomb exploded.

The roof of the cave gave away as Abaj's body was blasted back against the wall. It caved in, crushing whatever remained of Abaj's body beneath the rubble. Olose's body was blown across the cave and crashed down, a horribly burnt and mangled mess, a safe distance from the site of the cave in. The _Destiny _crew quickly rushed back, looking down on his body in horror. Arcadia turned away, covering her mouth. Tears formed in her eyes, and tricked down her face, leaving a black streak from her mascara. Nadia looked curiously as his body began to twitch. She smiled slightly, much to everybody's shock. His body suddenly arched up, and he let out an ear-piercing scream. Fur began to sprout all over his body.

"What's happening?" Suse cried in panic.

"He's regenerating." Nadia explained. "Here we go again." She added in a sigh.

**Author's Note: No, relax, I'm not going to moan this time. I just want an opinion. Obviously this story arc has pretty much come to a close, but not the actual story of Olose, which is what this story is supposed to be. So, I was wondering, should I continue his story in _this _actual story (so that it just continues as chapters of Twilight of the Immortal) or make a new story for his next adventures? Either way, there's a chapter or two of this arc left. I'm inclined to leave it as one big story, even though the future adventures won't really feature much from his old adventures (although I could make it so that they do). Any opinions there would be nice!**


	24. Regeneration

**Author's Note: Another shorter than usual chapter, sorry about that, but that's because it's the 'wrap up' of the last storyline. I've decided as for continuing the story to carry on with Twilight of the Immortal, making it basically the 'Arcadia' phase of Olose's life, and then if later on I decide to do further tales after she's died (since she's not immortal), that will probably be a new story. Sure, technically Olose could bite Arcadia to make her immortal too, but he would never inflict the curse upon her, so she has to die eventually (as do the whole _Destiny _crew, which is a real shame).**

**Anyway, I have lots of adventures lined up for the _Destiny _and her crew. Well, two at least currently, and maybe more, taking inspiration from all over the place (I'm not very original). And these two won't be like the short sailing chapters, but slightly longer adventures spread over a couple of chapters hopefully. So that's my current decision, so this is _not _the final chapter, just a wrap up for the storyline.**

**CHAPTER 24**

**REGENERATION**

Olose screamed loudly in agony, his back arched upwards. Fur covered his body, it rapidly retracting and expanding as his body began to regenerate its wounds. His face slowly began to twist and change. His nose became smaller, his eyes seemed to widen, coming towards the front of his face. Even his hair began to grow in length. His jaw became slightly smaller and his skin seemed to darken a shade. His hair was no longer brown, but black. His entire body seemed to adjust itself, he became slightly shorter in height, but just as muscular as before. The fur finally retracted into his body, and the new figure let out a slight groan, lying in front of the amazed crowd.

"Does that hurrrrt?" Suse asked, watching in awe.

"You have no idea." Olose sighed, smiling slightly, before blacking out.

His eyes opened again some time later, and he found himself staring at a roof that he instantly found familiar.

"He's awake!" Came an irritatingly loud, yet incredibly cheerful, cry. Suse was smiling over him. He suddenly became aware of somebody gripping his hand tightly. He sat up to see Arcadia holding it, and began to take in the familiarity of her room. He was lying in her bed, with Suse smiling sat beside him and Arcadia holding his hand in joy. Arcadia struggled for words, and settled for a tearful smile of pure happiness. Suse however, did not remain silent. She threw herself around Olose (much to his surprise). "We thought you wouldn't wake up!" She cried cheerfully. "You're awake! You're awake!"

"Yeah, I noticed." Olose grumbled in slight surprise. "What happened?"  
"You passed out after you-" Arcadia paused, unable to think of the right word.

"Regenerated?" Olose suggested.

"Yes. After you regenerated in the caves." Arcadia explained. "You were still breathing, but we could not-" Her voice cracked from sadness, the memory of how worried she had been was still fresh in her mind. "-we could not wake you." She finished. "We carried you back to here so that you could recover safely."

"You'rrrre heavy." Suse input in a moody sounding grumble. Olose laughed.

"Thanks." He said, beginning to sit up before wincing in pain. "I'm sure regeneration didn't hurt this much last time."

"Did you get blown up last time?" Arcadia inquired. "That is what happened here."

"I got my face sliced off. That didn't exactly tickle." Olose smirked. "So, how do I look?" He asked, looking over his hands. "Hm. Skin's a bit different." He observed. He swished his tongue about in his mouth, feeling the inside. "New teeth. That's weird." He remarked. He managed to get out of bed, and stand shakily. Arcadia rushed to his aid, helping him stay upright. He had luckily been dressed in simple black pyjamas so that he wasn't entirely naked, which was probably for the best since he had just gotten out of bed in front of everybody. "Have you grown?" He asked Arcadia, who was stood by him. She smiled sweetly. "Or have I shrunk?" He questioned, looking over to Suse as if to check his height. "And I'm sure my hair didn't come down to my mouth last time."

"Would it be easier if you had a mirror?" Arcadia asked with a slight grin that disturbingly looked like the sort of expression Olose would make.

"It might." He answered in a laugh, suddenly swaying and falling over again. Arcadia tried to hold him up, but was just pulled down with him. She landed on top of him, their faces close to each other. Olose could feel her sweet breath. She let out an embarrassed laugh and quickly stood again.

The door to the bedroom swung open, and Olose looked over, rather surprised to see nobody there. He then looked down a bit, seeing Phabrizoe walk in, who let out an annoyed frown, apparently aware that Olose had completely failed to notice him at first. Trevia and Nadia followed him in.

"Glad to see your awake, Captain." Phabrizoe remarked.

"Yeah. Feel like I've got one hell of a hangover though." Olose countered, rubbing his head and grinning slightly. "Thanks for showing up, by the way. Of course, I had it all under control, you understand."

"Oh come on, you can't do anything without us." Nadia smiled. Olose laughed slightly, managing to sit up in the bed.

"How did you find me? I thought the clue was pretty cryptic." Olose asked.

"Crrrryptic?" Suse repeated, and Olose assumed she didn't know what the word meant. "I used to worrrrk for Abaj you know! It was obvious!"

"I was employed by him too, and all that got me was thrown out of a window." Trevia pointed out with a smile.

"Was that a joke? From you? Trevia?" Olose asked in shock.

"Just a humorous truth." She answered with a grin.

"So what happens now?" Nadia asked, folding her arm across her body.

"Don't Olose and Arrrrcadia get married and live happily ever after? That's what happens in all the storrrries I rrrread." Suse said smiling. Arcadia and Olose laughed, embarrassed.

"Well, I figure Arcadia still needs a bodyguard, and with Abaj gone, I'd like my old job back." Olose suggested, trying to move away from Suse's ideas.  
"You appear to be the one who needs the bodyguard." Arcadia smirked.

"And who would captain the _Destiny_?" Trevia cried, sounding unusually worried.

"Nadia. You. Phabrizoe. I dunno. Maybe it's time we retired her for a bit." Olose suggested. "You know, just live a peaceful life, away from all that."

"Sounds boring." Nadia shrugged.

"We can't return to the ship easily." Olose pointed out. "The Captain Sampson that commanded that vessel is dead. Replaced by this shorter version. Everybody take note! I'm shorter. It's unpleasant." Suse giggled at Olose; he was still taller most of them.

"With all due respect, Captain, I think I should complain about shortness." Quipped Phabrizoe.

"So what do we do? I don't want to lead a peaceful life." Nadia interjected.

"Alright, what about a less peaceful life?" Olose suggested. "Arcadia, I'm your bodyguard, right?"

"Well, yes." Arcadia answered, puzzled.

"So technically I'm in charge of security?" He asked.

"Yes." She replied, trying to figure out where he was going with his new idea.

"Well then, what if I decided we need a squad of protectors, because, as proven, I can't protect you all the time." Olose explained. "What if I said we needed about, oh, I don't know, four more bodyguards?" Arcadia smiled as the other four realised what he was suggesting.

"Well, if you thought it was for the best, there is little I could do to argue." Arcadia replied, still smiling. Olose grinned.

"So it's settled then!" He cheered. "We're the new security force for Arcadia's protection, so no more madmen manage to kidnap her."

"What about the _Destiny_?" Trevia asked, and Olose got the impression that she was deeply attached to the ship and their experiences on it.

"As a group of bodyguards, we'll pretty much be mercenaries when Arcadia isn't travelling." Olose pointed out. "That means we take the _Destiny _and do what we do best. It's win win."

"If you say so, Shorty." Nadia grinned.

"Hey! Cut that out!" Olose protested.

"You're not our captain anymore." Nadia laughed.

"I'm still your boss." Olose pouted. "So no 'short' jokes, okay?"

"Okay. That's that. So, what do we do now?" Suse asked, almost bouncing around in boredom.

"I'm hungry. Anybody else hungry?" Olose asked. Arcadia's face fell flat.

"I saw you…all….blown up." She answered, struggling to find words. "I do not think I shall be eating for a long time."

"Well, I died." Olose replied. "That takes it out of you. I'm hungry. Let's grab some food." Olose got up, and promptly fell on the floor.

He looked up angrily at the others, who were laughing riotously. Even Arcadia chuckled.

"Dammit. This didn't happen last time." Olose groaned, getting his legs working again and staggering to his feet. Arcadia slipped her hand around his waist to support him. Olose smiled at her gentle touch.

"So, where arrrre we getting food?" Suse asked, still bouncing around.

"I am sure my chef could prepare us a delicacy." Arcadia offered.

"Or we could just go to that restaurant. You know, the cheap one." Olose suggested. "I love cheap food."

"That is because you have the digestive system of a werewolf." Arcadia stated rather bluntly and humorously. "Greasy food makes my stomach hurt. My chef can prepare whatever you desire."

"Fish!" Suse cheered.

"She lives on a boat." Trevia said to herself. "You'd think she'd be overrrr the fish by now."

"Okay, fine." Olose grumbled. "We'll eat here. Come on, let's get downstairs." Olose gestured to the door and the group began to head out. Arcadia paused.

"Olose?" She asked.

"Yeah?" Olose turned.

"Can I talk to you alone for a moment?" Arcadia requested. Olose shrugged.

"Sure." He turned to his crew. "See you guys in a minute!" His crew filtered out the door and Arcadia walked up to him, her hips swaying in an almost seductive manner (something that seemed very out of place for Arcadia). She didn't say anything, but just kissed Olose.

"It would appear I no longer need to go on my tip toes for that." She smiled. Olose folded his arms with a grumble.

"I'm not _that_ much shorter. If you took those high heels off I bet you couldn't reach." He said in reply. Arcadia laughed.

"I've missed you so much." She said softly. "And now it's over, and we can spend our lives together." She hugged him tightly, filling Olose's nostrils with her sweet scent. He embraced her happily.

"We can. I promised you we could. I promised you it would end." Olose smiled. "No more running. No more hiding."

"You realise a girl like me falling in love with her bodyguard will be frowned upon by the whole of my society?" Arcadia pointed out, slightly hesitant.

"I'm a werewolf and hungry. If they complain, I'll eat them." Olose joked. Arcadia giggled slightly.

"You have a slight point, I think." She translated Olose's joke into a new meaning. "You meant to say who cares, am I correct? What does it matter what everybody else thinks?"

"Actually, I was just making a cheap joke, but I'll take that." The two kissed passionately, before staring deep into each other's eyes.

"We should probably catch up with the others." Arcadia decided.

"Yeah, we have eternity now, right?" Olose shrugged, heading for the door.

"Oh, Olose." Arcadia called, and Olose turned. "I found this in the cave." She held out his brown jacket, and he grinned. She considered throwing it to him, but deciding that she couldn't throw at all, and would probably just embarrass herself. Olose took it off her, slipping into it. "Hm." Arcadia mumbled. "It appears to be a little large for you now."

"What did I say about the short jokes?" Olose warned sarcastically.

"You may be in charge of the others, but my family are the ones employing you." Arcadia reminded him. "That means I can make short jokes."

"Damn." Olose grumbled. "Guess that's just a sacrifice I'm going to have to make."

"Sacrifice for what?" Arcadia asked.

"To be with you." Olose smiled.

"Sweet Altana, that's the worse line of dialogue I've ever heard." Came a voice from the doorway. Nadia was leant in it. "Hurry up, I'm hungry. We told the chef what we all wanted. Hope you like fish, Suse insisted you try some."

"Okay, we're coming." Sighed Olose. Arcadia smiled, following him.

"You know, that jacket looks a little big on you now." Nadia pointed out as they walked, and Olose rolled his eyes.

**Author's Notes (again): I apologise for some more corny romantic dialogue, but at least I had Nadia make the comment I'm sure everybody was thinking this time. Which, out of interest for utterly obscure references comes from the old Earthworm Jim cartoon which had the dialogue exchange "It's time to put the APE back in APEOCALYPSE!" "That's unquestionably the worse line of dialogue I have ever heard." which I thought was hilarious. Earthworm Jim. What a great show. Ahem.**

**Oh, and "New teeth. That's weird." was a Doctor Who reference from when he regenerates in the new one.**

**And if anybody senses any innuendo in the 'short' jokes (especially since they've all seen him naked now technically) you're imagining it! I did notice when writing it though that people may find it unintentionally funny (I'm sure Bootus would be giggling if he read this!), so that was accidental, it's not supposed to imply anything!**


	25. Lost

**CHAPTER 25**

**LOST**

It had been four months since Olose's victory over Abaj, and he his life had been enjoyably calm. The few jobs the crew of the _Destiny _had taken had been simple, and Arcadia had managed to stay out of trouble. It was only recently that Olose was becoming restless. He had at first relished his life without adventure, taking it as a welcome break, but now he was beginning long for excitement in his life.

It was convenient then that he was about to experience just that. He heard the loud bell ringing, meaning that somebody had arrived at the door of Arcadia's manor. She naturally sent somebody to answer it, but Olose went with him as a bodyguard, assigned to scan over everybody entering the house.

He sighed as the potential for adventure as lost; the person standing by the door was a young woman, elegantly dressed in a pink dress with long flowing blonde hair.

"Ah, Lady Saria." Arcadia's servant bowed. "Please, do come in."

"I need to see Arcadia." The woman Olose guessed was Saria sounded frantic, and quite worried.

"Of course." The servant said politely. "Please, follow me." Saria shot Olose an uneasy glance before following the servant. Olose tagged along behind, arriving in the large living room where Arcadia was sat, looking suitably elegant, in one of the fancy chairs. She stood in surprise, with a large smile.

"Saria!" She exclaimed. "How are you? I haven't seen you in years." The servant bowed and exited as Saria sat down.

"Not too good I'm afraid." Saria answered, sounding worried.

"Why? What is wrong?" Arcadia asked quickly, rushing to Saria's side.

"It's a long story." Saria admitted. "I heard a rumour that you have in your service the legendary Olose Sampson."

"Urm, hi." Olose called, walking over. "I'm Olose Sampson. Can I help?" Saria stood quickly and took Olose's hand, shaking it in an unusually firm way for somebody with the title of 'Lady'.

"It's an honour to meet you." She said, her voice filling with a strange sense of hope.

"What is wrong? What can Olose do?" Arcadia was quick to ask all the questions on her mind.

"I need to hire him and his crew." Saria explained. "Father has gone missing."

"What happened?" Olose asked, taking interest at the prospect of a job.

"My father is an explorer." Saria explained to Olose, and Arcadia nodded, knowing this already. "I often go with him on his adventures." She chipped in with a smile. That would explain her handshake, apparently Saria was a bit of an adventurer herself. She gulped, trying to tell her story accurately. "His latest expedition came after he found a map in an old book. It showed an island that should not be there. He took us there, and we ventured through a thick jungle where we came to a large plateau." Saria blushed slightly. "I, urm, I caught jungle fever. I was very sick. I couldn't go with him." She was clearly embarrassed, which Olose managed to resist the urge to laugh at. "Two of his assistants stayed with me, and the rest ventured up onto the plateau. They-" Her voice broke and she paused. "They didn't come back." She explained. She suddenly became more animated, standing. "The plateau is huge, risen far from the ground surrounded by a steep cliff face. But it is split into two, you can ascend, but to get across to the main plateau, you'd need a bridge. My father must have felled a tree to get across, but the tree seems to have collapsed, stranding them there. I was delirious at the time, but his assistants ran, carrying me with them. They talked of huge monsters up on the plateau, like they had never seen."

"You think your father is still alive?" Olose asked.

"I'm sure of it." Saria answered. "He may be a Lord, but that doesn't mean he's inexperienced when it comes to survival." Olose wondered if that was a dig at Arcadia's family. "I've spent the last week recovering from my sickness, but I came as soon as I could."

"Why us?" Olose asked. "What about the authorities?"

"They refuse to go after what they call the delusions of a sick child. They think my father was killed by beastmen, and I imagined the island in my sickness." Saria sounded bitter as she explained.

"That still leaves every other mercenary open. Why'd you pick us?" Olose inquired.

"There are-" Saria paused, searching for the right word. "Stories. Legends. They say that you took on an entire army. That you diffused a war single-handed. They say that you cannot be killed. They say it's impossible for you to lose, and that you never fail." Olose paused, and smiled slightly. "Silly stories, I know. Impossible, too." Olose let out a slight snigger. "But if you are good enough for Arcadia, then you must be worthy. I remember the kind of trouble she could get herself into." Arcadia blushed brightly.

"Let us not remember _that _story, Saria." Arcadia interjected.

"Damn. Now I'm curious." Olose muttered. "Well, we're willing to help out." Olose paused, hitting the awkward conversation topic. "For, urm, a price. You understand. My crew doesn't work for free."

"Olose!" Arcadia protested. "This is my friend!"

"I'll give her a cut rate then." Olose shrugged. "I have Treviaon my crew for Altana's sake, do you expect them to work for no money?"

"You may have a point." Arcadia grumbled to herself.

"That's no problem." Saria laughed. "I can pay you. I'll pay you double!" Olose grinned from ear to ear.

"Just one problem." He decided. "If we're heading to an island that only exists on one map that your father has, how are we going to find it?"

"I have it. He left it with me for safe keeping." Saria explained, opening up the pendant around her neck and removing a roll of paper. Olose unrolled it in surprise, and looked at a small island, circled. "I've even done a copy of it." She added. "Just in case you lose it."

"She certainly knows your reputation." Arcadia joked with a smile. Olose peered at the map curiously.

"That's odd." He said to himself. "I had no idea there was an island there."

"That's why nobody's discovered it." Saria input. Olose nodded.

"I figured." He replied. "Okay. It's quite a ride to Seblina from here. I'm guessing you want us to leave as soon as possible?" Saria nodded. "Right. Two days then. One day to get there and prepare all our equipment, a second to leave. Shouldn't take too long to reach this island of yours. By the end of the week, we should make the plateau, then we'll come back with any news, and hopefully, your father." Saria laughed to herself.

"Oh no. You don't understand. I'm going with you." She explained. Olose rose an eyebrow.

"I'm not certain it's going to be safe. And we generally get into some seriously violent situations." Olose told her.

"Have you been to that island?" Saria snapped. "Do you know anybody who has? Well?" Olose fell silent. "I'm the only one who knows the way. So I _have _to go." She smiled victoriously.

"Fine. Meet us at the chocobo stables tomorrow. We'll depart first thing in the morning. You won't find any chocobo carriages running this late." Olose explained. Saria nodded.

"Thank you." She said politely.

"Do you have somewhere to sleep tonight?" Arcadia offered. Saria nodded again.

"Yes. I'll be fine. I'll see you tomorrow." She got up and walked out. "Thanks again. Nice meeting you again Arcadia."

"I can say the same." Arcadia smiled. Saria curtseyed fairly awkwardly, and left. Olose sighed and collapsed in one of Arcadia's fancy chairs.

He looked up to her and smiled.

"Well, this sounds exciting." He decided.

"I know. What time tomorrow are we leaving?" Arcadia asked.

"What? Sorry, did you just say _we_?" Olose inquired blankly. Arcadia nodded, slightly frustrated.

"Yes. I want to go with you." She explained.

"But it's dangerous!" Olose protested.

"Saria is going." Arcadia stated as if she had made the finishing point.

"Saria? Saria's father is an explorer, she does this stuff all the time." Olose argued. "Arcadia, it's dangerous. Nobody knows what's out there. You could get hurt, or worse, killed."

"It is better than sitting here, worrying about you." Arcadia grumbled.

"I'm immortal! You don't need to worry." Olose laughed.

"You are not entirely immortal. Some things can kill you." Arcadia pointed out.

"Well, if it's that dangerous, you coming along is out of the question." Olose smiled in victory. Arcadia sprang to her feet, wrapping her arms around Olose.

"Please." She requested.

"What could you possibly do to help?" Olose pointed out.

"Reach things off the top shelf for you." She smiled. Olose couldn't repress a laugh.

"I'm still taller than you remember." He said trying to keep a straight face.

"So you claim." Arcadia smiled again, just trying to wind Olose up. Her smooth hands ran over his neck, and he relished her gentle touch.

"Okay. Fine. You can come. But if it gets too dangerous, I'm sending you back to the boat with Suse and Saria." Olose explained. "Nobody knows what's up on that plateau, but it was enough to stop Saria's father. He might not even still be alive." Arcadia paused in awkward silence. "There might be blood and things too." Arcadia turned pale.

"No. I am going! You are not going to make me change my mind." She said, trying to fight back the queasiness she was feeling.

"I never said I was trying to." He smiled. "If you want to come, then you can, but please think about it carefully. We don't know just what it'll be like out there."

"I will be fine, with you around." Arcadia answered. Olose sighed. He could see there was no way to dissuade her.

"Alright, alright. Then get some rest. We're leaving early tomorrow, which means you have to be ready." Arcadia nodded.

"Sorry for arguing." She said softly. Olose laughed.

"That doesn't matter. Now I'm going to look over that map Saria left with Phabrizoe. See if we can't plot a course." Olose explained. Arcadia nodded.

"I shall get some rest I think, it is becoming late." She told Olose. Olose delivered a quick two fingered salute and left the room, heading to find Phabrizoe.

Morning soon came and the crew prepared to load up the chocobo carriage.

"How you can be taking more than all of us combined I'll never figure out." Olose sighed, loading yet another of Arcadia's suitcases.

"You do not think I over packed do you?" Arcadia asked gently.

"I have a hunch." Olose laughed. "Right, that's the last of them." He said having finally finished loading all of their equipment. "I'll take front with Arcadia, the rest of you sit in the back. I figure Arcadia must have some experience riding these things."

"Well, I mostly get ridden around." Arcadia felt fairly embarrassed to admit that in the presence of the hardened _Destiny _crew. They were all dressed practically, either in armour or basic jackets and trousers. Even Saria wore a basic tan shirt and trousers, with an explorer's hat on her head to shield her from the sun. In contrast, Arcadia was dressed as she always was, in an expensive and fancy dress, decked out with jewellery and make-up and feeling very out of place. "But I shall help all I can." She added, to try and make herself feel slightly more useful.

"Great. Let's get moving. Lives are depending on us, remember?" Olose climbed up.

"Yay! Herrrre we go again!" Suse cheered, jumping in.

"Is she always like that?" Saria asked Nadia quietly.

"You have no idea." Sighed Nadia, climbing in.

"Oh come on, it is fairrrly exciting." Trevia pointed out, jumping up.

"I preferred you when you were always moody." Phabrizoe grumbled, scrambling into the carriage.

"I wasn't moody! I was stoic!" Trevia protested. "Besides, if I've changed, it's Olose's fault."

"Most things are." Phabrizoe sighed with a smile. Saria looked baffled.

"Arrrre you alrrright?" Suse asked, poking her face in front of Saria's. "You look confused."

"I was just wondering if this was really the legendary _Destiny _crew." She grumbled. "You all seem a little-"

"You hearrr that?" Suse cried. "We'rrrre legends!"

"-Odd." Saria finished.

"Aren't all good heroes." Nadia smiled.

"I don't know. I've never met one." Saria joked.

"We'rrrre legends, but not herrrrrrrroes." Suse sounded a little disappointed.

"It isn't particularly heroic what we do." Nadia admitted. "We do just take any job for money. But it is fun." Nadia paused. "Speaking of what we do, why exactly is Arcadia with us?"

"She wanted to come, so Olose let her." Phabrizoe said, casually studying the map of the island's location.

"What's wrrrrrong?" Suse purred curiously.

"I don't want to sound rude, but she's not the most capable type." Nadia explained. "She's probably going to get us into more trouble than it's worth."

"I'm sure Arcadia will be fine." Saria input. "I mean, she's not going to be used to it, but we're only dealing with a long trek through a jungle. If she stays at the base of the plateau, she'll be fine."

"Do you know how Olose met her?" Nadia laughed. "He rescued her. Guess what from."

"Beastmen? Orcs? Goblins? Quadav? Could have been anything. Bandits, maybe." Saria guessed.

"It was a path. A muddy path." Nadia said bluntly. "Believe me, she really can't handle herself."

"You could be morrre rrrrrespectful." Trevia pointed out. "After all, she does pay us, give us lodgings, and keep us fed."

"Yeah, to _protect_ her. Because she needs it." Nadia explained. "I'm sure everything will be fine. I just don't want to get caught up rescuing Arcadia from some mess she got herself into. We're already on one rescue mission."

"I have to admit, Arcadia does have a habit of getting into trouble." Saria sighed.

"And you don't?" Nadia asked. "No offence meant, but both you and Arcadia are-"

"I know what you think." Saria interrupted. "That us rich girls can't take care of ourselves. Well, my dad is an explorer, and a pretty damn good one. I've probably seen more of this world than you have. Sure, I got sick. That happens. But it doesn't mean I don't know what I'm doing." She folded her arms, frustrated.

"Sorry." Nadia said after a pause. "I didn't mean to upset you." She had found herself feeling guiltier and guiltier about her aggressive mood lately, which she put down to being Olose's fault.

"It's okay." Sighed Saria. "It's just, I get easily annoyed. When people assume that being rich means we're all pushovers." She looked to the front of the carriage. "Although sometimes I can see why you'd think that."

"I thought Arrrrrcadia was yourrrr frrrrrrriend." Suse input.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, she is." Saria said quickly. "A loyal, kind and caring person. But she has no idea about the real world. I remember once me and my father took her out of the city. She'd never seen anything. She didn't even recognise a lot of really normal things. She was in utter awe at a stream we found." Saria paused. "She couldn't believe that water would just run through the countryside like that." She smiled in reflection. "Of course, we were pretty young then. And then she saw a goblin. She tried to pet it, like she would a chocobo back in the city. My dad saved her." Saria suddenly felt a wave of crushing depression sweep across her. "Altana, I hope he's okay." She sobbed, trying her best to stop the tears in front of the others, but failing. Phabrizoe took her hand.

"If he's as capable as you say he is, then he will be." Phabrizoe reassured. "But crying won't not achieve anything. You need to hope, not despair."

"Why is she so upset?" Suse asked, sounding baffled.

"What? How could you ask that?" Snapped Saria.

"Oh, she never had parents properly. Or at least got to know them." Nadia explained. "She doesn't quite understand the bond." Nadia turned to Suse. "It's like Olose dieing." She explained. Suse's face dropped.

"Don't be silly. He's immorrrrtal." Suse smiled naively. Nadia sighed, rolling her eyes and folding her arm across her body.

"Immortal?" Saria inquired.

"It's a long story." Phabrizoe put in.  
"It's a long journey." Saria shot back.

"Point." Admitted Phabrizoe. "Well, it began…"

**Author's Note: Wow. In something revolutionary to me, I actually try to develop characters instead of just throwing them into action! Ahem. Hopefully that worked to give you an idea of the new character, and just to have some fun with them. But I still actually feel that I'm a bit wishy-washy on the _Destiny _crew and their personalities, they seem to be changing all the time. I have who's who and how they act in my head, but I'm always trying to make them evolve and change, and it comes out horribly wrong, like the characters are never the same. Even Saria changed constantly through this chapter. And Olose and Arcadia and their romance is still terrible.**

**Oh, and, in true Vivli style, I failed to come up with an original concept. This one rolled about (which I wonder if anybody recognises) as a homage to The Lost World (no, not Jurrassic Park!) when I watched the 1925 silent movie the other day (I'm going to be studying film and theatre at university, and wanted to make a start on seeing some old films). I liked the idea of the forgotten world on a plateau, so stole it. I'm really bad for stealing ideas, so sorry to keep doing it, but I think it's original enough to fit in. At least there were no stolen lines of dialogue this time! **


	26. Purpose

**Author's Note: Sorry this chapter is late! I found it really hard to write for some reason, despite the fact the idea was just 'take me, and how out of place I would feel, and make it into a chapter'. Go figure. I guess the problem is while I would be out of place, I'm not exactly like Arcadia, so it makes it difficult.**

**Bit shorter than usual, but not by much, so sorry about that! That's my laziness and lateness. I'm tired so decided to cut it a bit short.**

**CHAPTER 26**

**PURPOSE**

Olose leapt off of the chocobo carriage as soon as it pulled into Seblina. He spotted a familiar dockhand and rushed to him.

"Did that stuff I ordered on linkshell get loaded?" He asked quickly.

"Urm. I'm not sure." The dockhand seemed puzzled. "Who are you?" Olose sighed, rolling his eyes.

"It's me! Olose! Captain Sampson!" He exclaimed.

"You're not Olose Sampson." The dockhand replied.

"Sure I am." Olose smiled. "Long story. Are those supplies loaded on the _Destiny_?"

"They're at the dock. They haven't been loaded yet." The dockhand answered.

"Hm. Well, we had better get to work." Olose turned to the carriage. "Come on guys! We haven't got long!" Murmurs of acceptance came from the crew as they clambered out of the carriage and set about grabbing and hauling the crates up onto the deck of the _Destiny_.

"What is in all of those?" Arcadia asked, puzzled.

"Food. Tents. The kind of stuff we'll need." Olose explained. "Payment should be easy, at least." He tossed a bag of gold over to the dockhand.

"Is there anything I can do?" Arcadia asked, watching and feeling more and more out of place.

"Nah, don't worry. I've got it covered." Olose grabbed one of the large crates and lifted it, carrying it up a ramp onto the _Destiny_.

The crew continued to work while Arcadia shuffled awkwardly on her feet, feeling very useless. Eventually she decided to help out, disliking her feeling of being the odd one out. She tried lifting one of the crates, but gave up, discovering they were ridiculously heavy.

"What are in these things?" She asked Nadia, puzzled by the extreme weight.

"That one?" Nadia smirked. "That one's empty." Arcadia folded her arms, irritated. "It's not one of ours, either. Maybe you should just go and do whatever it is you do." Nadia walked back on deck leaving Arcadia slightly stung and a bit confused.

"But what is it that I do?" She asked. There was no reply.

"Come on!" Olose called, sounding overly cheerful to be back on his old ship. "Get up here, Arcadia, we're leaving!" Arcadia quickly ran up the ramp and onto the ship, lifting up her dress to avoid her tripping. "Hoist the anchor!" Olose ordered. "Lower the sails! Get that ramp on board!" The crew scampered about, obeying his orders as quickly as possible. Phabrizoe nipped past Arcadia, almost knocking her over. She watched in amazement as the ship converted from being moored in port to being fully at sea. "Bring me that horizon!" Grinned Olose as the ship departed, Arcadia feeling uneasy as it rocked beneath her.

She leant out over the side, watching as Seblina disappeared into the distance. Nadia let out an annoyed grunt, apparently Arcadia was in the way.

"Sorry." She said sheepishly, backing away. Nadia sighed, and continued about her business. Everybody seemed to have found something to do, even Saria. Arcadia, however, didn't have the faintest idea. She looked around the ship, at the mighty sail billowing above her (which was much bigger than she had thought it would be), at the water gushing past (which splashed with a ferocious power), and Olose who was stood at the helm (who looked to be having far too much fun to be captaining a ship). She sighed, backing away from the edge, realising that the water roaring past was making her feel ill. She sat on the steps leading up to where Olose was directing the ship. Phabrizoe ran to the steps, but sighed irritably, realising that she was in the way. She went to get up, but Phabrizoe cut her off.

"Don't worry, I'll use the other side." He sounded irritated, but didn't show it, running across to the steps on the other side.

"Sorry." Arcadia whispered in confusion, getting up. She turned and watched as Phabrizoe reeled off some information to Olose, which she either couldn't hear or didn't understand a word of. Olose nodded, and swung the wheel around, changing the ship's course. Suse bolted past, heading below decks. Even she seemed to have some purpose. Saria hurried up the steps to Olose. Olose nodded to whatever she said, but Arcadia couldn't hear it over the roar of the sea, and ordered Phabrizoe to take the wheel. He descended the steps with Saria.

"Oh, hey." He said sweetly to Arcadia, who managed a smile. "We're heading into the captain's quarters. We need to discuss just how we're going to find our way to the plateau once we make the island. Luckily, Saria has a more detailed map." He paused, seemingly reading Arcadia's feeling. "Why don't you help out? I'm sure you can come up with suggestions. From what I hear, the jungle isn't going to be easy to navigate." Arcadia smiled.

"I will do my best!" She cried with enthusiasm, following Olose in, glad to finally have a use.

Saria set out the map on the table in the corner of the quarters. Olose sat down, and Arcadia pulled up a chair beside him. He looked down, scanning the map.

"Easiest place to land is here." Saria pointed to a smooth and pleasant looking bay.

"Looks nice." Arcadia remarked.

"Yes." Saria said, almost through gritted teeth. "Except for that." She pointed to a hoard of jagged rocks just off of the coast. Arcadia hadn't realised what they were.

"Navigating them could prove difficult." Olose input. "Even for the _Destiny_, she may be small, but a single change in the currents and we'll be lost forever."

"Why do we not just come in from the other side of the island?" Arcadia suggested, pointing it out on the map. Olose sniggered, and Saria laughed.

"Urm, Arcadia, sweetie, we're a sailing ship. We can't sail against the wind." Olose tried to explain tactfully.

"Oh." Arcadia answered, blushing in embarrassment and sinking back into her chair.

"How did your father do it?" Olose inquired to Saria.

"He had one of the best navigators in the whole of Vana'diel." She answered. "We navigated the rocks."

"Well, if he can do it, so can we." Olose grinned. "At least leaving is easy. The rocks only seem to cover the approach angle. The winds don't show any signs of changing any time soon, so we can easily just sail away, letting them carry us."

"Once we're ashore, we still face many challenges." Saria explained. "For starters, as you can see on the map, we land on the south coast, and the plateau is in the north. The problem is that this river runs from this mountain in the west, across to the ocean in the east, entirely cutting us off from the plateau." She pointed to each location as she spoke. The mountain was to the far east of the map, and the river ran across in an almost straight line, at the south of the island (just north of the bay they were planning to land in). "It is a ferocious set of rapids. Last time we tried to cross it, we made a bridge, but eventually lost somebody anyway."

"We're not risking losing anybody to a river." Olose stated firmly.

""Why do we not just go around the river, at the mountain?" Arcadia inquired.

"See those rings on the map, and how close they are together?" Saria explained. "That means the mountain is incredibly steep. It wouldn't be easy."

"It's still our safest option." Olose pointed out. Saria didn't look as if she agreed.

"We have another problem." She admitted. "Past the river is a massive boggy swamp. If we climb over the mountain, we'll be dropping down in the worse of it." Arcadia looked at the green shaded area on the map, representing the swamp.  
"But that covers the entire island." She pointed to the area with her soft finger, her bright red nail standing out against the murky yellow paper. "We would be in it wherever we crossed."

"The water source is at the mountain." Saria explained. "The swamp is much thicker and much deeper up there than it is elsewhere, and believe me, it was hard enough to struggle through it having crossed the river."

"The mountain still seems the safest choice." Olose fielded. "We can't risk losing our equipment the river way anyway."

"But you'll end up stuck in a bog, and if you're not careful, that'll be literally." Saria protested.

"It's the only way." Olose gave in answer. A cocky grin spread across his face. "Besides, we can handle a swamp."

"What if Phabrizoe froze it with his magic?" Arcadia suggested.

"Good idea." Olose agreed. "See? Told you we could handle it." Arcadia smiled brightly, one of her ideas finally being accepted.

"Phabrizoe is that powerful?" Saria asked in shock.

"What do you think made that fleet run aground?" Olose asked with a grin. Saria's eyes went wide.

"Urm, anyway." She tried to get back on track. "We then face a long trek through the actual jungle. It isn't easy, but it should be doable, before we reach the plateau. Then we face the real problem." She pulled the map closer to her, and pointed to the plateau. "The main bulk of the plateau is totally inaccessible. No way up. But, as you can see, just off to the east of the plateau is a smaller raised section cut off by a massive sheer drop from the main land. That we can ascend. My father built a bridge across. Something made it collapse, I don't know what. If we can construct one of our own, we can hop across without a problem."

"Felling a tree would be much quicker." Olose answered.

"It's high up. I hope you have a good sense of balance." Saria told Olose. Arcadia shuffled in her seat.

"Nothing we can't handle." Olose paused. "Right, we get across that way." He stopped to grab a pencil, and began to make markings on the ship. "We anchor the ship here, just out of the bay." He began.

"Hold on." Arcadia said. "I know I am probably being foolish, but why do we not just anchor the ship off shore, and then navigate the rocks on the rowing boat?" There was a pause.

"You have a point." Olose answered. "With supplies, we'd have to make two trips to the ship, and leave Phabrizoe with the _Destiny_, since he's the most qualified, but that can be done. It's much safer." Arcadia smiled, but it fell when she realised she was being competitive with Saria, a good friend of hers.

"Make sure we have medical supplies." Saria warned. "Wading through water, mud and fighting through the jungle often leads to diseases. You know what happened to me." She seemed reluctant to revisit that topic, as if it made her appear weak somehow.

"None of us are qualified doctors." Olose pointed out. "And Phabrizoe deals strictly in the black magic side of fighting." Arcadia paused hesitantly, looking at her hands, wishing she could be useful. "Anyway, once we've landed we move quickly. Phabrizoe is now staying with the ship, which makes freezing the swamp impossible. We'll just have to face it. When we reach the base of the plateau, we'll set up camp. Trevia will stay with both of you and Suse for protection. Myself and Nadia shall enter the plateau."

"What?" Saria sighed. "You'd be cutting down your forces greatly. What if you need us?"  
"We won't. I can handle myself. I'm immortal, remember?" Olose answered. "I'll make sure Nadia stays safe too. We don't want to risk more lives than necessary."

"So why are we even coming?" Saria asked. Olose laughed slightly.

"Urm, you're back up." Olose admitted. "I'm not entirely sure what we're going up against. And I think we may need reinforcements." He paused, taking on his deeper and more serious tone of voice. "If we don't keep in constant contact via link pearl, you are to form a second wave. Or, more over, Suse and Trevia." Saria looked offended, but Arcadia looked somewhat relaxed. She knew if Olose was afraid of something, it was much better to stay safe. "You're our employer, so we can't risk harm to you, and Arcadia needs protecting, so you two stay." Olose paused again, realising that sending in people after him might appear cowardly. "Our mission is to rescue your father, so I don't plan to stop until we find him or find out he's dead. Same goes for Trevia and Suse. That's our reason for two waves. Safety is our primary issue. This looks to be dangerous."

"Right." Saria said bitterly.

"I understand." Arcadia nodded nervously.

"Right. Now to tell the others." Sighed Olose. "I really should have held this briefing with everybody, shouldn't I?" The others nodded. "This 'Captain' thing isn't as easy as some people make out." He grumbled.


	27. Land

**CHAPTER 27**

**LAND**

_**Taken From Arcadia's Diary:**_

_We have lowered the anchor and the crew are preparing to go aboard. Olose is heading to shore with Trevia and Nadia and our equipment first to secure the beach. It would appear that he does not trust all the information we have. The rumours of giant monsters seem to have him behaving cautiously. Of course, that is most likely a side effect of my presence, I have heard enough stories of him charging into battle with little regard for safety in many other situations._

_This raises an interesting point. I am not even sure why I am here. I wanted to be involved and included for once, and with Saria coming along it seemed an ideal opportunity, but I have never felt more out of place. I could request to stay on the ship, but I do not think I could bear it. I would have to wait for Olose to return, not knowing his fate. I shall have to go with them, and face whatever is on that island._

_To make matters worse, I have no useful clothing. My dresses and high heels are highly inappropriate, and I feel that they may raise issues before I am through with this adventure. I can only hope that things are not as bad as I fear and that I am able to handle them. I would hate to let anybody down._

_I simply wish I had a use. I cannot help Olose, or the others in combat, know no magical spells and am physically not strong enough to carry the loads we brought from the ship. Perhaps something will develop that I can do. Time shall tell._

Olose pulled the rowing boat up to the side of the _Destiny _and peered upwards.

"Okay, it seems safe on shore!" He cried. "Nadia pushed me in the water while I was poised on the bow of the boat, and then blamed Trevia, but other than that, everything seems fine."

"Right. So we're leaving?" Saria assumed, jumping onto the rigging and climbing down to the rowing boat.

"Urm, yes." Olose answered, a little surprised by how brashly she acted. He shrugged. She was clearly just eager.

"Right away?" Arcadia asked, clearly much more reserved. Suse scampered down onto the boat while she was talking.

"Yeah, no need to wait. Get down here." Olose shrugged. Arcadia climbed onto the rigging, blushing slightly, realising she was still wearing a silky red dress (which when climbing down things with people below was not good). In truth, she knew that she should have brought more practical clothing, but hadn't, and didn't have time to change at this point anyway. She stumbled onto the rowing boat and fell over. Olose caught her before she fell overboard, and she laughed nervously. She managed to reposition herself to be seated as Olose stood, rocking the boat. "Take good care of her, Phabrizoe!" He yelled.

"You won't even notice you were gone!" Phabrizoe yelled back. "Might take her out for a sail though." He grinned sarcastically.

"Just bring her back in one piece! We should be back in a week, maximum." Olose explained. Arcadia looked at the boat longingly, and fearfully at the island. Spending a week there was a scary thought. Luckily, everything they'd need had already been taken ashore, and they would transport it via huge packs to where they set up their camp.

Olose rowed to shore, and Arcadia watched the vicious rocks jutting out of the ocean as they passed. She was very glad they had avoided taking the _Destiny _ashore, especially as she saw what looked like a mast jutting out from under the water. She gulped and sat down awkwardly, looking at the others. Saria was looking over the map she had and Suse was playing with her hair. They both seemed disturbingly calm. Arcadia was almost shaking with fear when the boat came into contact with the soft land, and she bolted ashore, her feet sinking in the soft sand.

Nadia smiled.

"You know, this beach is kind of nice. The water's warm, the sand is soft. Could stay here all day." She told Olose.

"I'd love to." Olose grinned. "But this is a rescue mission." He reminded her, becoming more serious.

"We need to get to the plateau, find Saria's father, and get off this island before we find out why he went missing and somebody gets hurt."

"You make it sound simple." Grumbled Arcadia.

"No he doesn't!" Suse protested.

"That was kind of the point." Arcadia replied, worried.

"Well, we can't stand around here all day." Olose announced, hauling one of the packs onto his back. Nadia and Trevia did the same, and they began to hike, scrambling up out of the sandy bay by a slope on which Arcadia slipped more than once.

Finally reaching the top she could look out across the rest of the island. There was a river gushing before them, just as the map had shown, spraying white foam up as the water rocketed on down. Across that she could see the festering swamp, huge dingy trees hanging, making it appear a place of darkness and death. She wrinkled her nose at the smell that even the fresh sea air behind them couldn't battle.

"Right. We head east!" Olose announced. "Come on. The mountain should be there."

"That swamp looks rather unpleasant." Arcadia voiced her concerns.

"We have no choice. It's the only way." Olose replied. "But our first task is to get by this river!"

"I can see the mountain in the distance!" Suse cheered.

"Yes, we all can." Grumbled Nadia. The peak wasn't as high as Arcadia had imagined, but it was steep, and she didn't see how they were planning to climb it.

They walked to it as quickly as possible, and Arcadia was already finding it difficult to keep up, cursing her lack of practical footwear hurting her feet, and the fact that she was already short on breath before they faced the task of climbing the mountain. She looked up at the mountain as they arrived, deciding it was far taller than it had looked when she had first seen it.

"So, we climb then." Olose smiled, looking at the edge. "Doesn't look to be easy." A threatening sounding roar ripped out of a cave nearby, set in the mountain. "Urm. Suse. I hope that was your stomach."

"I'm not hungrrrrrrry." Suse replied, frightened. Arcadia shook in fear. Another roar tore out of the cave. Suddenly three huge green tentacles burst out, wrapping around the edge of the cave and pulling out a huge green monster, multiple tentacles flapping around and one huge mouth with lethally sharp teeth snapping and drooling at the crew.

"Malboro!" Cried Olose. "Take cover!" The others ran for cover as Trevia, Nadia and Olose drew their weapons, closing in on the monster.

The creature swung its tentacle, and Olose ducked. When he stood again he noticed that Nadia was no longer next to him, but had crashed into the river.

"NADIA!" He screamed. "Get her!" He ordered to the others, before turning back to fight the monster. Trevia drew throwing stars and hurled them at the beast as Olose ran in, cutting away at its tentacles.

Saria rushed along the river, followed by Suse.

"Arcadia! Look for a rope in one of those packs!" She ordered. Arcadia nodded, and began searching.

"Found one!" She cried, hauling it out with great difficulty.

"Tie it to something!" Saria yelled.

"It's a grappling hook." Arcadia replied. "Will that do?"

"Perfect! Throw it here!" Arcadia threw it, and it thudded down between them. "Somebody needs to teach you to throw." Grumbled Saria as Suse dove for it, grabbing it and passing it to Saria. Saria spun it above her head and threw it with expert skill at Nadia.

It caught Nadia perfectly. A little too perfectly. It lodged in her leg.

"OW!" She exclaimed. "Son of a-"

"DUCK!" Olose cried, and Trevia did so, just missing the sweeping attack from the Malboro. He dove forwards, stabbing his sword into its belly. It roared, lifting itself up and just dropping down on Olose, crushing him.

"Olose!" Trevia cried, throwing more ninja stars before drawing her katana. She ran in, dodging its tentacles and slicing it across the face. It howled and swept down with a long arm, wrapping it around Trevia's foot and picking her up, leaving her dangling upside down. "Uh oh." She grumbled.

Nadia scrambled back onto the land, coughing up water.

"Ouch!" She exclaimed at Saria. Saria managed an innocent laugh.

"Sorry." She shrugged. "I saved you, didn't I?"

"Yes. But watch it next time, I'm already down a limb." She got to her feet painfully and pulled the grappling hook out of her leg. "OW!" She screamed.

"OW!" Trevia yelled as she thudded into the floor. The tentacles of the beast shot down at her, preparing to rip her apart. She scrambled for her katana, grabbing it and slicing away wildly, cutting back the evil arms as they came in at her. One wrapped around her blade, hurling it away. She drew a dagger, and stabbed into one of the tentacles. Another picked her up, swinging her towards the beast's mighty mouth. An arrow thudded into it, causing it to drop her. Nadia smiled, holding her bow. Trevia scrambled away. The beast prepared to attack her again.

It suddenly roared in pain. The crew watched in horror as the bottom of it's mouth was torn open from beneath, and a werewolf burst out. Olose leapt out of the mouth, in his werewolf form, and skidded to a stop on the ground. The Malboro screamed in pain. Olose leapt at it's face and tore at it, ripping out its eyes and tearing at its flesh until it dropped down dead. He changed back into his human form, grabbing his jacket from under the collapsed creature and slipping into it, his torn trousers still covering up anything that would be considered indecent.

"Right." He began. "That's one monster down." He grinned. "What's more, a Malboro would have lived in the swamp, meaning that the cave it was in must lead through the mountain."

"So we don't need to climb?" Saria assumed.

"Exactly. We'll cut through the cave and emerge in the swamp." Olose explained.

"Dark caves possibly full of more monsters?" Arcadia narrated. "What exciting adventures you experience."

"Well, we're wasting time." Olose shrugged. "Let's get moving."

"The money had better be worth this." Nadia grumbled. "Can we stop for a bit? I want to bandage my leg, you need some clothes and Arcadia looks like she's about to collapse." Arcadia blushed brightly, her exhaustion leaving her looking tired, and the adrenaline from the fight making her loose even more energy.

"Good point." Olose admitted. "Okay, let's stop for a bit before we head on. Recover as it were." He paused. "Although I like this whole jacket and torn trouser look." He grinned. "Very manly."

"Yeah, you're right." Nadia sarcastically said. "So it doesn't suit you at all." Olose's face fell.

"Hey! That wasn't funny!" He cried sensitively, but it was too late. The entire group was roaring in laughter, even Arcadia.


	28. Swamp

**Author's Note: A few answers to questions in the reviews. Firstly, how did Nadia fire her bow and arrow with one arm? Well, urm, oops. I needed a character to fire an arrow, and picked Nadia, as she's the typical warrior woman, and forgot she only had one arm, so it's actually an error. Instead of going back to correct it though, it's brought up in this chapter, so thanks for pointing it out TheFrogKiller, wouldn't have wanted to miss it, but at least now it's kinda explained.**

**As for Sotobu and Crazy Steve. Originally Sotobu was going to join the crew, but I couldn't handle that many characters, so he didn't. But he will show up. Maybe in this storyline, or the next. And Crazy Steve, he's already appeared, kind of. If you read Phabrizoe's first appearance, he said there were two captains he could have worked for, and one crashed his ship and never noticed. Who does that sound like? Also, in my head, Crazy Steve is the one who managed to get Saria's father's ship through the rocks, but that's not said.**

**Whether he'll appear obviously is debatable, because to me he's always been there, coz he's that kind of character (too dense to notice he should die), but I don't know if I'll ever actually put him in by name as the story deals with immortals, and the idea of Crazy Steve being immortal for a joke might not work. Could be an ancestor though. Depends if an opportunity arises.**

**I also have to warn about updates. I'm not certain I can keep them up. For no reason, I'm really struggling. Not even writer's block, I know what I want to write, I'm just struggling to get it down on page. I started this chapter at about 2.30 this afternoon, it's not 1.05 in the morning. Gives you an idea of how hard I'm finding it, so I may miss a few. Sorry if that happens. I'll do my best to keep updating though, I know where this is supposed to go, I just need to write it.**

**CHAPTER 28**

**SWAMP**

_**Taken From Arcadia's Diary:**_

_We finally stopped for rest, having shortly escaped death at the hands of some foul swamp monster. Luckily, Olose managed to take care of it without too much trouble. Well, I would certainly define it as trouble myself, but he appears to be utterly unaffected by the fact that he tore it quite literally to pieces._

_The thought of that dead creature makes me feel rather ill. Olose seems to find it rather amusing that I am keeping track of our adventures out here (indeed right now he is laughing over my shoulder and making all types of 'cute' comments). He also mentioned something about a 'ship's log' he was supposed to give me. That sounds curious._

_Hm. He seems prepared for us to depart. He wants to lead us through a cave he feels may emerge at the swamp. I just hope he is correct._

"Nadia? Can I ask a question?" Came a voice from Trevia as they walked through the caves. She rarely started a conversation, so this was already something that seemed odd.

"Sure. What?" Nadia casually answered.

"Just how did you fire an arrrrrrrrrrow frrrrom a bow with only one arrrrm?" She asked. Nadia paused.

"With great difficulty." She answered, flexing her arm.

"I helped!" Beamed in Suse.

"Which is why I almost missed." Nadia grumbled. Trevia chuckled slightly. "Out of interest Captain, do you know where you're going?" Nadia called after Olose, who was just ahead of the group.

"Through a cave?" Came a response that wasn't entirely awe inspiring. "Look, I'm sure this cave must lead to an exit. It's the only way the Malboro could have reached the other side."

"Unless it swam, and then went in the cave to hide from us." Saria pointed out.

"At which point we'll reach the end of the cave and turn back. No worries." Olose shrugged.

"Judging by that smell, we are getting closer to the swamp." Arcadia said uneasily.

"See? Told you I knew what I was doing." Olose laughed.

"I don't recall you ever telling us that." Nadia sighed.

"Well, I do. Look, the exit is up ahead." Olose smiled as light poured in from the huge gap at the end of the cave. "Now we just have to negotiate a swamp, find out way through a jungle and up the plateau before rescuing Saria's father from all kinds of unknown terrors. Piece of cake, right?" Nobody replied as Olose lead them out of the cave.

They paused as they stood on the mountain side, the cave entrance being raised just above the swampy grounds. They looked out across it cautiously.

"Oh dear." Arcadia gulped. Swamp waters bubbled, they were a foul looking green that made Arcadia feel ill just looking upon it. The ground around the waters wasn't much better, seen to be thick and deep marshland, with gigantic dead trees stretching into the air. Olose crossed his arms, looking for that sense of extra authority.

"Okay. Everybody, watch your step." He ordered. "With the weight of these packs weighing us down, one mistake in movement and you could sink forever and never be seen again."

"Your words fill me with confidence, Captain." Nadia sarcastically grumbled.

"This means I lead, and you match my footsteps." Olose explained. "That way we should stick to solid ground, and make the other side."

"And if you make a mistake?" Saria asked.

"Hey, I'm a werewolf. It'll take more than a swamp to take care of me." Olose answered confidently, jogging down the edge of the mountain. The others followed.

He quickly began to march across the swampy ground, picking each step carefully to avoid letting his feet sink into the ground too far. The others followed suit. Suse skipped along between each step, looking unusually happy.

"Wee! This is fun!" She cheered, jumping to each piece of solid ground Olose found with glee.

"You have a strange definition of the word fun." Arcadia grumbled, not being so lucky as her feet sank and she became stuck. "I have an odd sense of déjà vu." She mumbled. Saria pulled her out and grumbled something to herself inaudibly.

"You realise if we'd carried the boat with us we could have just rowed across the swampy waters?" Nadia pointed out.

"Yes, thank you, I'm aware of that _now_." Olose sighed. They suddenly heard a loud screech and instinctively drew their weapons. A huge bird like creature swept over them, with a long sharp beak, gigantic leathery wings and beady little black eyes. Olose had never seen anything like it.

"It's coming about again." Nadia observed.

"Want to trrrry some more of that one arrrrmed shooting?" Trevia asked.

"Okay, new plan." Olose smiled. "Run!"

The monster swept down at them again, and this time Olose managed to scope its whole size; it was huge, its wings being about as wide as the _Destiny _was long. This time it went directly for him. He smiled, ducking at the last second as it soared over head. He grinned as it turned back to attack again.

"What now?" Saria screamed.  
"Run! I'll deal with it!" Olose ordered, spinning his sword. It soared down at him, and he began to reconsider. "TREVIA!" He yelled. "It's aiming for you!"

"Aw nuts." Sighed Trevia, katana in hand. She ran as it soared down behind her, splashing along in the mud. It flipped down two huge talons, and she dove just before it got to her, crashing down to safety.

Or moderate safety at least, since she landed in one of the stagnant pools of dark green water. She burst out, shaking her hair ferociously and wiping the slime away from her eyes. Suse stopped in her tracks, letting out a long:

"Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!" As she looked at Trevia. Trevia scrambled out of the swamp, not looking amused.

"Trevia! Down!" Olose cried. The monster was flying back around, coming to attack again. Trevia dropped face first on the muddy floor as Olose hurled his sword, it lodging perfectly in the beast. The creature seemed undeterred, turning in the air. "Hm. We could have a problem." Olose decided.

"You're not the only one with a sworrrrd." Trevia grumbled angrily, getting up and wiping the slime off of her.

"I don't think a sword is going to stop it." Olose observed as it began to come back down at them. "Run! I'll handle this!"

"I'm surrrre." Trevia muttered.

"No, not yet." Olose warned, passing her his jacket. "Don't want to get it muddy. Right, now run."

"Not get it muddy?" She exclaimed. "Look at me!" She was still dripping from head to toe in green slime. Olose shrugged, before bursting into his werewolf form, ripping his clothes to shreds.

"He's going to have nothing to wear in a minute!" Suse pointed out.

"Just run." Grumbled Nadia. Trevia bolted across the ground, joining up with the others still fleeing. Olose's face twisted into a smile as the beast turned back at him.

It let out a deafening screech again, and he braced himself. It was coming at him with rapid speed.  
"Come on then." He snarled. It was about to get him when he leapt at it, knocking it out of the air with tremendous force. It splashed down in the mud, and screeched, grabbing Olose in one of its talons and throwing him off. He slid along the ground before flipping back onto his feet. The bird like monster screeched as it got to its feet. It jabbed at him with its spiked beak, impaling him in the chest. He laughed, ripping down across the front of the long beak like jaw and tearing it. The beast screeched and flew back, hovering in the air. It beat downwards with its wings, causing a gust of wind that knocked Olose over. He grumbled, looking up at the monster as it swept in, picking him up in its talons and lifting him high into the air. It began to crush him, and he groaned in pain, before ripping outwards, his arms breaking back the talons. The creature released him and he fell, splashing down below.

He got up with an angry grumble. The monster turned again in the air, looking almost as if it was smirking. Olose spat out a mouthful of mud.

"It's not over yet." He managed to grin. The creature soared down at him, and Olose ran at it. This time he jumped early, soaring over it and landing on its back. He bit into its spine and it screeched, crashing down and skiing along the ground. He jumped off and it splashed into one of the green swamps, disappearing beneath the sludge. He breathed a sigh of relief and turned around, spotting Arcadia. He ran over to her.

"What are you still doing here?" He asked in a concerned growl, which sounded quite humorous. He was still in his werewolf form. "I told you to run."

"I know, but I cannot." Arcadia replied innocently, squirming uselessly in the mud. Olose rolled his considerably larger and more monstrous looking eyes.

"Why did I take you to the one place I knew you couldn't handle?" Sighed Olose to himself.  
"I think you just like rescuing me." Arcadia answered as he pulled her out. "The others escaped, but I became stuck again. I did not want to stop them on my account." She explained.

"Oh, good. Come on, we'll catch up with-" There was a loud screech as the monster burst out of the slimy water behind Olose, and hovered in the air. "Okay, think you can manage running this time?" Olose asked Arcadia tensely.

"I can certainly try." Arcadia answered, her voice shaking.

"Okay. I'll handle our little friend here." The creature squawked at Olose angrily. "Oh, settle down." He spat at it. "Right, run!"

"Okay." Arcadia nodded, running as fast as she could. Olose turned to face the monster.

"Right." He began. "I'll confess, there's been a lot of not dieing on both sides of this battle. But I'm immortal, and you're not, therefore I think you're the one that should die." The creature let out a loud ear shattering cry. "Or, you could reason like that." It flew in at him, and this time snapped him into its beak. He ripped into it with his claws, letting out a horrifically loud growl. The creature shrieked and he dug his teeth into its beak, tearing it off. He fell out of it and splashed down below. "This is exactly why I don't like flying monsters." He grumbled, getting back up. It turned around again. "Don't you ever get bored?" He cried after it. It stayed silent, but flew in at him. He crouched down, waiting carefully for the right moment. It reared its head back, ready to strike. He leapt at it, tearing at its throat, and eventually, through it. He burst out it on the other side, covered in blood, but victorious. He smiled, before noticing he was now sat on a flying, but noticeably dead, creature. It crashed to the ground and catapulted him off, causing him to splash down in one of the mucky swamps.

He scrambled out, dripping in green liquid. He shook himself off like a dog before reverting back to human form, coming off much cleaner since most of the dirt was lodged in his now non-existent fur. He began to trek through the swamp, entirely naked, trying to catch up with the others. He paused for a moment, pondering how this wasn't exactly the type of situation he had ever expected to end up in. Eventually he carried on, smiling regardless.

He found the crew sat around in various positions just outside of the swamp. Trevia was bathing her hair in a nearby lake, apparently even hardened assassins hated having swamp muck in their hair. Suse seemed to be attempting to establish good relations with a frog she had found, but it kept jumping away from her. Nadia was struggling to clean the blade on Trevia'a katana, apparently a favour she had asked for. Of course, it wasn't easy with only one arm. Saria was looking over the map, and looking into the thick jungle, peering at the plateau which was now visible. Arcadia was sat on a rock she had found, and was spraying perfume she had brought with her onto her neck, trying to get rid of the stink of the swamp. Olose just stood, looking at them all with a grin on his face. One by one they noticed the naked man looking at them. Arcadia blushed and looked away while Saria laughed a bit.

"Ewww! Put some clothes on, Cap'n!" Suse cried, before going back to chasing after the frog she had found. Nadia smirked.

"Sir, we prepared your clothes over there." She pointed to a rock where she had laid them out, and casually went back to cleaning her sword. Olose folded his arms proudly.

"Yep, that went well." He said, marching over to pick up the clothes, before reconsidering, running and diving into the lake. The others watched before he emerged again and shook himself off. "That's better. One monster dealt with, by the way."

"What was it?" Asked a frightened, yet distracted, sounding Arcadia.

"I don't know. But I'm sure it came from the plateau." Olose answered, slipping into his trousers and shirt. He picked up his jacket awkwardly. "Trevia? Did you wipe yourself off with my jacket?" He looked at it, dripping in green sludge.

"What makes you think that, Captain?" Trevia asked casually. Olose threw the jacket in the lake, and then removed it again, slipping into the now soaked piece of clothing.

"That's better." He grinned. "What are you all sat around for? C'mon!"

"Awww, Captain. Can't we rrrrrrrrrrrest?" Moaned Suse.  
"At this rate we'll never reach the plateau!" Olose exclaimed. Everybody turned, looking longingly at him. "Oh, okay. But just for a minute."


	29. Interlude

**Author's Note: Sorry guys, but another short chapter. I really can't keep up with this chapter a day anymore. I dunno why, but I just can't do it. I'm so exhausted from staying up late to finish them every night, and I simply can't keep doing it I don't think. I'll keep trying, but I think I have to stop and reduce it, maybe do one every two days. Or do shorter chapters. I dunno yet. I might just need a break. It isn't writer's block, I'm just finding it hard to actually write! Which is surprisingly odd, because I do really enjoy it. So sorry for another substandard chapter.**

**On a lighter note, TheFrogKiller says that he knows from experience that experiences assassin or not falling in mud still makes you want to take a bath. As per his review. I just hope that's experience of falling in mud, not being an assassin! And it reminded me, the whole concept for that came from when I one time was up on our nearby moores, and took a shortcut back to the car. Of course, this shortcut cut out a huge amount of the journey, but was a marsh. Luckily I didn't fall over, all I succeeded in doing was getting my feet muddy, but it made me think that (I was in an adventurous mood) if you tried to do anything exciting, you're movement was really limited to being careful each step to make sure you didn't sink and get stuck. Which made me vow to write a story in such a setting. Or at least, a part of a story, to make the deal more interesting. Of course, I turned the marsh into a swamp, and the whole original concept faded, but that's why I had a swamp there! That's where the concept came from!**

**That wasn't really interesting, was it? At least it might have made up for the shorter chapter with that nice and useless insight into why I do things.**

**CHAPTER 29**

**INTERLUDE**

_**Taken from Arcadia's diary:**_

_The journey through the swamp is now over, and I am glad for it. I fear that the smell of that wretched place shall linger with me for a long while yet. If not for the fact that Trevia landed in it that no amount of washing will sort for a while, and Suse has decided to bring a creature she seems to have made friends with along._

_At least I can handle the terrain of the jungle better, even if my feet are causing me much pain from all of this walking. I just hope the campsite is up ahead, I am weary even while we are resting, and do not think I shall recover for some time. We are preparing to depart into the jungle again. I can only hope that this journey shall be a short one._

A drop of sweat trickled down Arcadia's neck as she walked through the jungle, cautiously tightening her fists as she saw a large snake move in the branches above. She stopped in her tracks and let out a low shriek as she felt something jump onto her back.  
"Suse!" She snapped angrily as the frog crawled up onto her shoulder. "Get it off of me!" Suse skipped up behind her, cupping her hands and taking the frog off of Arcadia's bare shoulder.

"Hey. He has a name, you know?" Suse said in a childish, yet upset sounding, tone.

"It is a frog." Arcadia grumbled, straightening out her dress and getting her wits together again.

"_He's a frog._" Suse replied, sticking out her tongue. "He's called Fred." She held him up to her face and looked into his eyes. The frog's tongue shot out, touching Suse on the nose and she giggled.

"How do you even know it is male?" Arcadia asked, confused.

"Look!" She held the frog up to Arcadia's face, and Arcadia turned away.

"Please." She said distastefully, holding up her hand.

"Would you two stop bickering?" Olose asked as if he was a parent scolding two naughty children.

"She was nasty to my frrrrog!" Suse complained.

"Now there's a sentence you don't expect to here." Olose sighed to himself. "Arcadia! Apologise to Suse's frog!"

"Fred." Suse corrected.

"Yeah, apologise to Fred." He ordered with a grin. Arcadia rolled her eyes and sighed.

"You know?" Trevia asked. "Therrrre's something nice about the jungle. It's just so pleasant. All the wildlife and creatures, the huge towering plants and trrrrrees, and that lovely warmth of the airrrr."

"Congratulations. You have just listed all the reasons why I _hate _the jungle." Arcadia whined.

"I love it." She smiled.

"So, you're a Kazham girl I take it?" Olose smirked.

"What do you find funny, exactly?" Trevia asked, folding her arms.

"You." He answered. "You're a hardened assassin, not somebody who skips through the jungle. Next you'll be picking flowers."

"I-I will not!" Trevia protested. "I was just commenting on how pleasant it was! Um, not that I find it anything special. Oh no." She tried to deepen her voice and sound serious. "I just thought Suse might be enjoying it, that's all." Olose laughed and Trevia looked annoyed. "Okay, fine. I'm not _totally _could hearrrrted you know?"

"I know." Olose answered, still laughing. "But you have to admit, you do _try _to act cold hearted and professional most of the time. It makes it funny when you let your guard down." Olose grinned as Trevia folded her arms, frustrated.

Saria seemed to pick up her pace, rushing between the trees before bursting out into a huge opening, her face beaming a smile. They were at the base of the plateau. Olose quickly caught up with here and grinned.

"Alright." He turned to the others, sounding quite weary, but in charge. "Let's set up a camp here. You know the plan."

"We do?" Arcadia asked, pushing a long leaf out of the way before pulling back her hand and wiping it off on her dress, instantly regretting that simple action.

"Yeah, me and Nadia head up the plateau while the rest of you stay with the camp." Olose explained. "Trevia and Suse form a second wave in case we don't come back. If _they _don't come back, Saria and Arcadia are to get back to the ship."

"So, how are we staying in touch?" Trevia inquired.

"With these." Olose handed out small link pearls to the group.

"Pink, Captain?" Nadia chuckled at the colour of the stones.

"They're Arcadia's. Not mine!" Olose protested.

"A likely storrrry!" Trevia laughed. Olose folded his arms angrily.

"It's prrrrretty!" Suse cried. "What does it do?" She added curiously after a pause. Olose rolled his eyes.

"It lets us communicate with each other." He groaned. "A link pearl. You know, communication via thought? We'll contact you, and you can keep updated on how it goes. When updates stop you know we're in trouble. Right?"

"I do not like the sound of that 'when'. It should be an 'if'." Arcadia pointed out.

"Yeah, yeah." Olose sighed. "Simple."

"How long do we wait beforrrre we look for you?" Trevia asked.

"I dunno. Improvise." Olose shrugged.

"Imprrrrovise?" Trevia repeated. "That's not verrrry good leaderrrrrship."

"True. Never said I was a good one." He grinned. "C'mon Nadia, to the top of the plateau!"

"Can't we rest first?" Nadia requested. "Set up camp, eat some food, stuff like that?"

"Dammed mortals." Olose muttered sarcastically. "Yeah, sounds like a good idea." He pulled out the tent. "Right. Anybody bring instructions on how to set this thing up?" The others laughed a little as Olose got to work.

It was some time later that the group were sat around the raging camp fire. Each held a bowl and hungrily ate the prepared food. Suse smiled proudly as they all took a mouthful. Only Saria and Arcadia showed their distaste.

"You're getting better." Olose smiled to Suse. Suse beamed back a grin, before continuing to eat the soup like substance she had created.

"Better?" Arcadia asked incuriously. "What did it used to be like?"

"You don't want to know." The _Destiny _crew said together.

"Hey!" Suse said miserably. "I'm learrrrning." She suddenly smiled. "Besides, this time I had Fred to help me!" Her pet frog climbed up on her shoulder and shot out its tongue, swallowing a fly.

"That thing helped you?" Arcadia said, forcing the soup down and dropping her bowl, clearly refusing to eat anymore.

"Fred!" She cried. "He's called Frrrrrrrrred."

"Indeed. Fred." Arcadia mumbled, looking quite pale. Saria laughed to herself, clearly understanding how foreign surviving in the wild was to her, and finding it endlessly amusing.

"Cheer up Arc, I could do us some tasty frog legs." Saria grinned.

"No!" Suse cried, springing to her feet with her hands cupped around her pet frog and running to hide behind Olose. "Don't let them hurrrrt Frrrred!" She whined. Olose sighed heavily.

"You lot are like little kids." Olose sighed. "Even you Arcadia, I thought you were meant to be mature."

"I can be mature when I do not have a frog jumping around near me." She answered. Olose laughed to himself, taking the frog out of Suse's hands and watching it crawl about.

"It _is _kinda cute." He smiled. "Look at it." He brought it over to Arcadia who turned away.  
"Ew. No!" She exclaimed. He laughed and passed it back to Suse.

"You should open up to stuff like that, you know." Olose told her.

"It is covered in slime and jumps around. I do not need to see that." Arcadia answered with a great manner of distaste in her voice.

"Arcadia, look around." Olose laughed, holding out his hands. "We're in a jungle. You need to be prepared to deal with a few bad things. Compared to some stuff out here, that frog is paradise." Arcadia, while Olose had been talking, had slipped off her shoes and was in the process of cleaning the mud that they were caked in off with a rag she had found in one of the packs.

"Yes. Like mud." She answered bitterly. "I would rather kiss that frog than handle that swamp again." She began to clean off her own muddy feet.

"I'm afraid it's the only way back." Olose tried to tell her tactfully. Arcadia sighed in frustration.

"Would it be wrong of me to ask somebody to carry me?" She sighed.

"Yeah, you tease me, but I can walk through the swamp at least!" Suse cried, sticking her tongue out again at Arcadia.

"I did not mean to tease you." Arcadia stated. "I just find your pet rather repulsive." She paused. "Besides, it _is _rather difficult to traverse muddy ground in high heels."

"And who's fault is that?" Saria input, eating Suse's soup simply because she was incredibly hungry.

"Should you not be on my side?" Arcadia inquired with a slight smile.  
"I go with the tides." Saria answered with a slurp. Arcadia couldn't hide how much she loathed Saria's eating habits.

"For a Lady, you don't eat very politely." Nadia observed.

"I know the rules, and I follow them when I have too." Saria answered with a shrug. "But who gives a damn out here?"

"Well said." Laughed Olose. "Now, I suggest we all get some rest. Tomorrow may be a long day."


	30. Separation

**Author's Note: Well, I got another chapter done, just about on time!**

**To Chibi-NarutoKawaii, just wanted to say glad to hear you're enjoying the story! Especially since I looked at your profile and I fulfil most of your pet peeves, so it's nice to know you still find it enjoyable. Thanks for reading! I mean, my story summary is _crap _for starters, and my chapters are rarely over 3000 words (it's _hard_, for me at least!). I update once a day, which hopefully helps counter the low word count thing, but sadly you've started reading (or reviewing) just as things take a turn for the worse update wise. As explained below:**

**This is much more to everybody; I managed to get this chapter done today, but it's 2 o'clock and I have a low stamina. It's an hour earlier than normal at least, I usually finish at 3 o'clock, but it's reached the point where I'm officially losing sleep to finish each chapter, and I mean hours of sleep. Which means (sadly, and a special shame since Chibi just started reading too, so I'm letting down yet another reader) I'm going to cut the updates to one every two days. If I _can_, then I'll do one a day. But no longer will I stay up until I've done it, because I'm losing so much sleep getting this stuff done I'm feeling ill most of the time, drowsy all of the time, and generally aren't doing anything because I'm so tired. I'm really sorry everybody, I'm _so _appreciative of my readers so I'm really sorry to let you all down by cutting the updates like this, but I just can't keep it up. Not sure why, I used to be able to handle it, but it should be better this way. Really sorry though!**

**CHAPTER 30**

**SEPARATION**

_**Taken From Arcadia's Diary:**_

_My night was mostly sleepless. I have slept with the awkward feeling that something else was in our tent, and my worse fear is that it was Suse's frog. I shudder to think of that thing being around my sleeping body._

_Olose has already departed for today, heading up to the plateau. I can only pray he remains safe. It is higher than words can describe, but so far up that even with my neck craned I cannot see the top from the base. If he falls crossing the gap, I can but hope his regeneration will save him. I was just warming to his new body too, there is something delightfully cute about his new appearance._

_Nadia faces a greater threat, not sharing Olose's immortality. I can do nothing but sit here and wait for them to signal us on the link pearl. I have a feeling that these coming days may be the longest of my life._

Olose finished climbing the slope first, and paused, looking out over the massive gap between the current part of the plateau they were stood on, and the rest of it. He was stood on the climbable part of the plateau, surrounded by trees and confronted by the huge drop. Nadia caught up behind him and looked down, feeling slightly giddy.

"That's a long drop." She commented.

"It was a long climb." Olose sighed. The two looked down at the tent, now looking like a puny insect. They could see right out to the _Destiny_, still bobbing on the waters just off the coast.

"So, how do we get across safely?" Nadia asked. Olose began to strip naked. She rose an eyebrow. "Urm, Captain?"

"Werewolf." He answered with a sigh. "I'm not ripping more clothes for no reason." He burst into his werewolf form, growling for a moment. "Right." He stated, casually folding his arms (looking quite comical as a gigantic monster). "See that tree over there?" He pointed to it with his huge claw like finger. "I'll just push it over, forming a bridge."

"So we climb across that massive drop balanced on a _tree_?" Nadia exclaimed. "You have to be joking!"

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Olose asked.  
"Dunno. Not an expert on the facial expressions of wolves." Nadia gave in response. Olose mumbled something inaudible and began to push at the tree, his voice building into a more and more ferocious growl until it toppled, crashing down across the gap and forming a bridge, just as he planned. He panted for a moment before turning back into his normal form and slipping back into the trousers he had removed.

"There. That worked well." He grinned. "Now just to cross it."

"You say that like it's going to be easy." Nadia grumbled.

"It is." Olose answered.

"I hope you have a good sense of balance." She warned, shaking a little from looking at the huge drop.

"Not scared of heights are you?" Olose taunted.

"I'm not scared of anything." She replied smugly. "It's just a long drop. A _very _long drop. I like living, that's all."

"Yeah, well, so do I. Convenient, really, since I don't have much choice." Olose pointed out, pulling his jacket back on. "But we can hardly go back down there and tell them we didn't rescue anybody because we couldn't cross the gap." He paused, grinning slightly. "Unless you want me to tell Suse, Arcadia and the others that you were too cowardly." Nadia sighed heavily.

"I hate blackmail." She sighed. "You can at least cross first."

"_Me_?" Olose exclaimed. "But it's a long way down." Nadia shot him a stare that Olose felt would have killed him were he not immortal.

Arcadia walked out of the tent looking frustrated.

"What's wrrrrrong?" Suse purred.

"There is a frog jumping around in there." She answered firmly. "Of course, I would not want to jump to conclusions on _who's _fault that might be." She said through almost gritted teeth.

"You found Frrrrred?" Suse exclaimed, disappearing into the tent. Arcadia rolled her eyes and sat down on a rock that Olose had dragged over to make seats during the campfire the night before. She picked up a flash, and began struggling to unscrew it. It was done up tightly, and eventually Saria came over and undid it for her, leaving Arcadia to just let out an innocent laugh. Trevia was looking up to the plateau, not looking particularly pleased.

"Are you alright?" Arcadia asked. Trevia's gaze came back down, looking steely, and it sent a shiver down Arcadia's spine.

"I'm fine." She answered, the gaze disappearing and her becoming her new, more open, self. "Just a little disappointed Olose didn't take me. Who knows what adventures they're having up there right now?"

"I am perfectly happy to be left out of any adventures." Arcadia stated uncomfortably, pouring drink from the flask to a cup. Trevia rose an eyebrow.

"She's not really cut out for this kind of thing." Saria input. Arcadia folded her arms, feeling a little offended, but knowing Saria was completely correct.

"Don't you wonder what's up therrrre though?" Trevia asked. "I mean, if that monster came from that place, then anything else could do. Therrrre could be crrreatures nobody has ever seen up there."

"If they are like that monster that attacked us, they can stay up there." Arcadia stated. Saria laughed a little while Suse wondered out of the tent, frog in her hands.

"Don't you rrrrun away again." She whispered down to the face of the frog, which twitched obliviously. Its gigantic red eyes shot around, looking for a target. It wriggled out of Suse's hands and jumped away. "Oh no!" Suse whined, chasing it. Even Arcadia allowed herself a smile this time, watching her run after the little frog. That is, until it jumped up onto Arcadia's lap, at which point she sprang to her feet and backed away.

"I think it likes you." Grinned Trevia. The frog climbed up and leapt into Arcadia's drink, splashing around.

"Or the water." Saria pointed out. Arcadia sighed.

"I was going to drink that." She moaned. The frog put its little hands on the edge of the cup, and scrambled out, tipping it over and sending the water pouring everywhere.

"Shame it knocked it over." Trevia muttered.

"I was not going to drink it after that frog had been in it." Arcadia pointed out.

"Of course." Trevia sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Frrrred!" Suse cried. "Come back!" She started to chase the hopping frog, but it was Saria who scooped down and picked it up. She looked at it an d laughed.

"It is kinda cute." She told Arcadia, who simply rolled her eyes. Saria handed the frog back to Suse.

"Thanks!" She beamed, skipping away with the frog in her cupped hands and sitting down on the ground just away from the campsite.

"Don't go too farrrr!" Warned Trevia. "Wouldn't want you to get eaten or anything while we werrrren't watching." Arcadia smiled slightly.

"You seem to care for her." Arcadia pointed out.  
"Ah, Captain wouldn't be pleased if she died." Trevia shrugged.

"I meant you had a reputation for being cold." Arcadia explained.

"Oh, _that_." Trevia laughed. "I just rrrrealised some things are morrrre imporrrtant than money."

"Like frogs?" Arcadia smirked, watching Suse attempt to communicate with her pet. It just shot out its tongue, touching her nose again, causing much giggling on Suse's part.  
"Like friends." Trevia replied slightly more seriously.

"Heeeeeeeey!" Suse cried, turning around, having apparently heard them. "A frrrrog can be a frrrrriend." Trevia laughed as the frog hopped up onto Suse's shoulder, causing her to beam a smile of pure delight.

"Of course it can." Trevia laughed. Arcadia couldn't hide her own smile creeping across her face, which evolved into a full laugh as the frog scampered down the back of Suse's top, causing her to squeal in horror.

Olose clambered off of the tree and turned to Nadia, who jumped down after him.

"There, that wasn't so bad, was it?" He laughed, now safely on the larger section of the plateau.

"There is no way in hell I'm doing that again." Nadia grumbled.

"Only way back." Olose innocently pointed out. Nadia let out an angry growl.

"Let's just get this mission over with." She snapped, clearly uncomfortable being anywhere near the large drop. She was still shaking, and Olose could literally smell her fear, which he knew she knew, and because she knew it, she was irritable. Olose paused, deciding that he had become confused over that train of thought. All he knew was she didn't like anybody knowing when she was scared, and she certainly was scared. A low dull roar echoed through the trees.

"Hm." Olose grunted. "That doesn't sound good."

"Thank you for your expert opinion." Nadia mumbled. "Well, what shall we do?"

"Stay down, and stay quiet." Olose ordered.

The ground began to shake as some massive beast took slow footsteps. Something was approaching. The two stayed crouched, and waited tensely. They saw fall into few a massive creature, with gigantic tree trunk like legs, a huge bulk of a body, a neck extending high into the sky with a tiny head attached and a mighty tail. It nibbled at leaf on one of the big trees. Nadia drew her sword, but Olose held her back.

"No." He whispered. "It's eating leaves. I think it's vegetarian."

"Oh good." Nadia answered dryly. "Let's hope it doesn't kill us."

"It shouldn't attack us." Olose explained confidently. It stomped past them and Olose grinned triumphantly to Nadia.

"THE BRIDGE!" Nadia suddenly screamed. Olose turned around in horror to see the monster reach the tree he had made the make-shift bridge out of.

He sprang into action, drawing and hurling his sword as a distraction. It struck the creature's leg, and it continued, utterly failing to notice Olose's attack.

"Oh." Olose muttered.

"Sir, you don't have a sword anymore." Nadia pointed out.

"Indeed I don't." Olose said thoughtfully. "Give me yours!"

"Hell no!" Nadia protested.

"Oh fine, I'll do this the old fashioned way!"

Olose ran at the creature at full sprint. Just before he could reach it, it swung its mighty tail and hit him with it, sending him flying. He crashed down, skidding and stopping just by the edge of the plateau and a lethal drop. Nadia spun her sword.

"I'll deal with it!" She heroically cried.

"NO!" Olose warned. She stopped. "If you fall off the edge, you'll die!" He exclaimed. "If I fall off the edge, I'll regenerate again, and I don't want to risk ending up any shorter." He said to lighten the mood.

"You could be taller." Nadia casually flung at him.

"Yeah, it's pretty much random how I regenerate." Olose admitted.

"So, what do we do about the monster then?" Nadia asked.

"Leave it." Olose stated. "We'll find another way back." It swung down its tail and toppled the tree from the gap, causing it to fall down below. "The others can't follow us now, we're alone. I'll tell them to stay put."

"Why Captain?" Nadia curiously questioned.

"Because otherwise they'll do something extremely stupid like try to cross the gap to rescue us." Olose answered. "And if they do that, then they risk falling down and dieing a horrible death, not something I want to allow." He casually pulled out the link pearl, which was shattered in his hands. "Oh. Curses." He sighed sarcastically. "Nadia, give me your link pearl."

"Mine, Captain?" Nadia asked curiously. "But I left mine at the camp. You had yours." Olose let out a low growl.

"Okay. This is okay." He sighed. "All we need to do is rely on them not doing anything stupid down there." He decided, breathing calmly. "They won't do anything stupid, will they?"

Trevia sprung to her feet as soon as she heard the tree crash down.

"Nadia and Olose arrrre up therrrrre!" She cried. "And cut off!"

"What are we going to do?" Inquired Arcadia.

"Rescue them." Grinned Trevia.


	31. Disaster

**CHAPTER 31**

**DISASTER**

_**Taken From Arcadia's Diary:**_

_We've departed to try and find Olose, although I have no idea just how we are planning to cross the gap to the plateau. We have left the camp gear behind, taking with us only what we need (and Suse's frog, she will not leave it behind it would appear). Of that I am glad, the journey is tough. We have stopped for a rest, due to my insistence, I have found myself unable to keep up with these other more experienced adventurers, and feel this will not be our only rest on the trip to the plateau. I never realised just how hard life must consistently be for Olose._

_Oh, Altana, I pray that he is unharmed._

Olose wondered through the undergrowth, pushing a gigantic leaf out of his way. It sprang back in Nadia's face, causing her to emit an angry grunt.

"Captain? Where are we going?" She inquired. Olose turned around.  
"This way." He answered, pointing. "No purpose just hanging around at the edge. We're still on a rescue mission, remember?"

"So, where are we going to look?" Nadia casually asked.

"I think once we get out of the thickness of these trees, we might be able to find something." Olose decided.  
"And if we run into any _non_-vegetarian monsters?" Nadia asked, her hand instinctively gripping her sword hilt.

"We run away." Olose answered with a shrug. "Simple, really."

"Yeah, as easy as that." Nadia grumbled pessimistically. "I knew I should have stayed with the camp."

The two heard a rustling noise up ahead and instantly sprang into action. Nadia drew her sword while Olose fiddled with his belt, trying to find where he had put his. It took mere moments for him to remember he had actually lost it and leap into a ready stance anyway, hands raised. Out of the trees thundered the form of a gigantic galka, who looked confused, and a little lost.

"Eh?" Olose muttered, his hands dropping. Nadia lowered her weapon.

"Who the hell are you guys?" The galka called in shock. Olose paused, blinking surprise.

"Sotobu?" He repeated. The galka lifted a mighty eyebrow.

"How do you know who I am?" He asked.

"It's me! Olose! Olose Sampson!" Olose cried, before pausing. "We met a few years ago. You were ranting about Bastok. Sure, I had a different face then. Different body too. But we met."  
"Great. I finally find somebody on this godforsaken plateau and it turns out to be a crazy man." Sotobu grumbled.

"No. I'm serious!" Olose cried, craning his neck up to look at Sobotu's face.

"Is this true?" The galka asked Nadia sceptically.

"Sadly, yes." Nadia gave in response.

"So what are you doing here?" Olose asked. Sotobu laughed.

"You know how I'm from Bastok, right?" He grinned.

"Oh goddess yes." Olose sighed.

"Well, I'm one of our best mercenaries." Sotobu explained. "I was hired by Lord Roxton to help him on his expedition up here. Smart move that was." He sighed.

"Roxton?" Olose repeated.

"Saria's father." Nadia guessed.

"Well, we're the rescue party." Olose grinned. "Who's still alive?"

"Only me and Lord Roxton." Sotobu answered. "A gigantic beast marched by and attacked. It destroyed our constructed bridge and killed everybody else. You mentioned Saria?"

"Yeah. She contacted us." Olose explained.

"She must have survived then. That's good news." Sotobu decided.

"Blimey!" Came an exclamation from behind, and everybody spun around. "Jolly good! You found some rescuers!" A fairly old gentlemen with a trimmed grey beard and a tan shirt, complete with explorer's helmet and blue scarf, stood before them.

"Lord Roxton, I presume." Olose smiled. "My name's Captain Sampson. Part of the rescue operation your daughter sent."

"Saria? Is she here?" Roxton inquired.

"Safely back at the campsite." Olose told him.

"Excellent! Then let us return there, post haste!" Roxton demanded.

"Not so easy, I'm afraid." Nadia explained.

"A huge monster knocked our makeshift bridge away, we're as stranded as you are." Olose enhanced Nadia's point.

"Well darn." Spat Roxton. "You have support at the camp?"

"Yeah, but no way of getting in contact, and your daughter is there, would be dangerous for them to get involved." Olose explained.

"Well, if you cannot contact them, then you cannot stop them." Roxton smiled. A sudden roar echoed between the trees. "Hm. We must retreat. Come. I shall show you to our abode."

"I hate it when he speaks like that." Sotobu grumbled.

Arcadia was lagging quite far being the others as they ascended the steep slope leading up to the top of the plateau.

"Please. Wait." She panted, becoming quite frightened at the concept of knowing she was alone and could face any monster coming from the plateau as they had before. The others turned around and stopped, seeming somewhat irritated. Arcadia reached them and stopped, gasping for breath. "This is some climb." She remarked.

"We can rrrrest." Trevia suggested. "And decide just how we arrrre planning to crrrross the gap, since that is ourrrr biggest prrrroblem."

"We could jump." Saria joked.  
"Let us send that frog across first as a scout." Arcadia chipped in.

"No!" Suse protested, hugging her pet to her chest.

"Apparently erecting a bridge was not the best path to follow, so we may need to come up with an alternative." Arcadia stated, deciding to get back on track.

"Like?" Trevia shrugged. Arcadia fell silent.

"What if we waited on the other side, ready to slide something across to the others as soon as they fall into view?" Saria suggested. "That way the bridge should hold so that they can safely get across."

"What if they're in trouble on the other side?" Suse pointed out, before folding her arms proudly at the fact she had made a point.

"Try the linkshell." Arcadia suggested. Trevia nodded, and held the tiny pearl in her hand, willing the appropriate thoughts to send a message.

Olose never received the message due to his smashed link pearl, but he would have been far too distracted to answer. He was dodging the stamping steps of a gigantic bipedal monster, its huge mouth full of sharp looking teeth and its leathery green hide impenetrable by swords.

"I hope this home of yours is close!" Olose cried,

"It's just up ahead!" Roxton yelled. Olose saw a small cave in the distance and bolted for it. All four ran inside, and the creature stuck its head in, roaring in anger. It took a few moments before it realised its prey had eluded it, and it turned away.

"What the hell was that?" Nadia screamed. Sotobu sat down with a thud.

"They're all over the plateau." He told Nadia. "Some kind of gigantic monster."

"I have a theory." Roxton began. "That they are creatures from before the fall of Gaia. I theorise that somehow this plateau survived the destruction of that land when it became Vana'diel."

"What are you talking about?" Nadia laughed. "Gaia? Nothing _became _Vana'diel. Vana'diel was a land formed of the crystals and of the Goddess."

"A mere religion, my good lady." Roxton smiled. "There is increasing _scientific _evidence that suggests there was a land before Vana'diel, and that a cataclysmic event destroyed it. The continents shifted over time and it soon became Vana'diel." Olose laughed.

"Science?" He joked. "It's all just myth."

"Captain? Since when did you know anything about history?" Nadia laughed. Olose paused, suddenly remembering how he knew. A fairy tale he had been read when he was younger, living with his foster parents in the village he had destroyed. He shook off the memories painfully.

"Just an old fairy tale was set in Gaia, that's all." He explained. Roxton chuckled.

"Ah, the Legend of the Light Warriors." He smiled. "No. Obviously that one is just myth. There were no time travelling heroes of legend, that is certain."

"Good thing too." Grumbled Sotobu. "Light Warriors! What a sissy name for a band of heroes! If I ever ran into them, I'd show them a thing or two!"

"Gaia existed almost a million years ago, if we are correct, Sotobu. You have no need to worry about running into any of its inhabitants." He paused. "Obviously false fairy tales aside, I do feel that Gaia did exist, and these creatures we see now roamed it."

"So this is the last little slice of Gaia in the whole of Vana'diel?" Olose inquired.

"Yes." Roxton answered. "And do you realise what that means?"

"That we charge people for access and become rich?" Sotobu suggested.

"Urm, no." Roxton stated. "That this is the final piece of evidence to disprove the crystal theory."

"Whoa." Nadia held up her hands as a sign to stop talking. "Is that a good idea? Doesn't pretty much the entire existence and harmony of Vana'diel hinge on the fact that it was born of the crystals. I mean, if Gaia exists, does that mean Altana doesn't?" Olose was slightly surprised by the logical point Nadia had risen.

"I've never seen any evidence to suggest that Altana doesn't exist, even if Gaia does." Roxton explained. "Well, except Sotobu there." He added with a grin.

"Yeah, I love you too." Sotobu grumbled.

"But surely the theory that this whole world was constructed by the crystals is fundamental to how people think of the world." Nadia argued. "If we disprove that theory for certain, then Altana knows what'll happen."

"We have more major concerns now anyway." Olose stated. "Like getting off of this plateau."

"It should be a simple case of erecting another bridge, and with the extra manpower now here, it should be a simple enough task." Roxton explained.

"Provided we don't get eaten." Sotobu pointed out. "I hear that can be a bit awkward."

"Staying safe from the beasts will be a major priority." Roxton confessed. The ground suddenly rumbled very loudly, and an explosion could be heard.

"What the hell was that?" Cried Olose.

Arcadia was sat on a rock elegantly, enjoying her rest while Trevia paced, frustrated at her failure to contact Olose and Nadia. Suse was distracted trying to keep her frog from escaping and Saria was looking over at the island wishfully. She was peering at the huge mountain that rose from the plateau and hung high in the sky. She leapt out of her skin in pure horror when it suddenly exploded, sending lava and plumes of black smoke soaring from the top.

"Sweet Altana!" Saria exclaimed.

"Oh my goddess!" Arcadia cried, covering up her mouth.  
"AHHHH!" Suse screamed. It isn't appropriate to repeat what Trevia yelled. Even Fred the frog jumped from Suse's hands, hiding behind a rock. Arcadia thought even she could feel the wash of heat from the lava, but didn't know if it was her imagination or not.

"Olose!" Arcadia called. "We have to get over there!"

"It's too dangerous!" Trevia snapped. "Olose can take care of himself."

Olose, Roxton, Sotobu and Nadia stared upwards at the plumes of black smoke.

"Oh. It was a volcano." Remarked Sotobu casually. Shocked faces turned to him. "Well it was."

"I've never seen an eruption like that in all my years exploring." Roxton commented. "We have to run. This jungle will be reduced to lava in mere minutes. And at the rate that volcano Is erupting it will cover the entire plateau! It must have been building up for years."

"I've always said you're a master of bad timing, Captain." Nadia shot.

"We need to run, and find a way across, _now_." Olose decided. The four began to run when suddenly there was a roar.

"Sotobu, for our sake, I hope that was you." Roxton spoke slowly as the ground began to shake with monstrous footsteps.

It was now Arcadia who was pacing desperately.

"We cannot just sit here." She snapped.

"We have to." Saria sighed. "Even if we could find a way across, it's so dangerous over there it we wouldn't return. We can only rely on Olose and Nadia to find my father and get out of there."

"That lava surrrre is spewing fast." Suse remarked.

"It's going to engulf the whole plateau." Trevia explained.

"I cannot just wait while the love of my life burns!" Arcadia sobbed.

"If you go over there you'll just die." Saria cried. "Just sit down. Stay calm. Write in your diary." Arcadia shot her an angry look.

"We can't do anything." Trevia shrugged. "We just need to wait." Arcadia sat down, her fists tightened. Another mighty roar came from the volcano. She slumped, and began to cry. Trevia looked over at her and then glanced back to the view of the plateau. Saria didn't pay her any attention. Suse went up to her and hugged her.

"He'll be okay!" She explained with a childish smile. "He's always okay!" Arcadia forced a smile, looking over at the plateau. She let out a silent prayer that Suse was correct.

**Author's Note: Well, that was much easier to get done (being done over two days). Once again, I apologise for the slower updates, but they are much _much _easier for me. This chapter was still fairly short, but at least I got it done without losing excessive sleep.**

**I do feel I should apologise for the volcano cop out though, just to throw some non-monster related action in and keep things tense. But it's a huge coincidence something like that would happen, and basically is just a cop out to let things happen, so sorry about that.**

**And on another note altogether, I referenced my original idea for this coming from the Lost World in Saria's father being named 'Roxton', which is the name of the hunter that goes with the band in that story (at least in the silent movie version I watched). I figured it was a better name than 'Challenger', which I was originally going to use and also a reference to The Lost World.**

**Anyway, sorry about the slower updates, but I am finding them easier, which means I should easily be able to keep up a chapter every two days. But I am sorry for letting people down by doing less than normal. I hope you guys reading don't mind too much! Sorry!**


	32. Escape

**Author's Note: TheFrogKiller thought we'd almost have a chapter without an author's note last time? Well, I'll show him! I won't put one this time! Ha! That'll make up for it!**

…

**Wait a minute.**

…

**Oh, darn!**

**Seriously though, I made a note this time 'coz I wanted to say this is the last chapter of this plot arc, and I'm going start a new one next chapter, either tomorrow or the day after. I managed to get this one done in a day because I'm looking forward to a few scenes from the next arc, so I wanted to get to it. The problem I have at the moment is coming up with a satisfactory end for the whole story, as these short individual adventures really have no continuity so there's no climax, but I'll see what I can come up with.**

**Oh, and I'm forced to turn down Trath's marriage proposal. Sorry! Touched by the offer though!**

**CHAPTER 32**

**ESCAPE**

"How do we get into situations like this?" Nadia screamed, exasperated. The gigantic bipedal beast stomped behind the retreating adventurers, and shortly behind it, huge amounts of lava flowed from the erupted volcano. It let out a deafening roar, bending down, attempting to sweep up the fleeing group in its mouth., and they felt its foul breath, stinking of the thousands of beasts it had consumed, wash over them.

"I don't mean to worry anyone, old chaps, but I think we may be for the chopper." Roxton announced.

"Come again?" Olose asked blankly.

"I think he means we're going to die." Nadia input.

"Defeatists!" Sotobu cried. The four burst out into a clearing which bore the remnants of an old camp site.

"What's this?" Olose inquired.

"Our old camp site, my good man." Roxton replied. "From before we were forced to retreat to the caves."

"Grab that rope!" Olose ordered. Nadia obeyed quickly, sweeping down, pulling a length of rope from what was left of the old tent.

"What are you planning?" Sotobu asked, confused.

"Give that here." Olose ordered, the beast behind them getting ever closer. "And an arrow." Nadia obeyed, and Olose began to tie the rope to the arrow. "Shoot the arrow across the ravine and use the rope to climb across. It's quick and the only thing we have time for."

"Why are you telling me?" Nadia asked. "Do it yourself! I only have one arm!" She waved it at him as if to remind him. "Firing a bow is difficult!"

"Then get Sotobu to take the shot." Olose shrugged. "I'm going to distract big mean and green over there." He gestured back to the stomping monster.

"That hardly seems wise at this moment in time." Roxton yelled over the roaring of the beast.

"Yeah, while I'm all for your heroic sacrifice for us, it'll just eat you and carry on." Sotobu explained. "And I'd rather have a fourth meat shield when we get cut off."

"You're not going to, and you'll be surprised how long I can last." Olose grinned. "Just keep running. And don't look back."

"Sir?" Nadia questioned. Olose looked at her. She passed him her sword, all while they were running. "Good luck."

"Get out of here. _Now_!" Olose turned and leapt at the mighty beast, jumping far higher than it should be possible, using the powerful muscles in his legs to propel himself. The creature snatched him out of the air in its claw, which, despite its small size could move incredibly quickly. Olose dug his sword into the claw before the monster could stick Olose into its mouth.

It dropped him and he crashed down. He dove for his dropped sword, but pulled away as he noticed the lava getting ever closer. The beast stomped out of the way, swinging its tail as it did so, hitting Olose and sending him flying. Luckily this actually helped Olose clear the lava, and he did in fact crash down in front of Sotobu.

"Good job." Came a sarcastic grumble from the galka.

"Be quiet." Olose grumbled, getting up. He could see the beast still stomping after them. "I'm not finished with it yet!" Nadia sighed.

"Sometimes I think you risk your life intentionally." She grumbled.

Olose charged back, skidding to a stop in front of the monstrous beast. It let out a bellowing roar at him.

"Okay. Round two, pal." Olose spat. The monster let out yet another mighty roar. "Would you stop doing that?" This time it swept down and picked Olose up in its mouth. Olose managed to jump out just in time, avoiding the deadly teeth and swinging up onto its head. "Alright, maybe just stick to roaring." He sighed. The creature tried to reach Olose with its tiny arms, but failed. It paused, as if contemplating some immense mathematical sum, but in fact just putting all of its limited intelligence into finding a solution to its immediate problem. It almost managed a grin as it came up with an answer. It swung its mighty tail at Olose, who jumped out the way, meaning all it managed was for it to hit itself in the head. It looked startled for a moment as Olose landed and turned around to face it. Its eyes went wide as it attempted to calculate the fact that it had just delivered a mighty blow to itself. It stumbled back in a daze, seemingly gasping as it stepping into the lava and toppled over, it burning, becoming consumed by flames. Olose paused with a victorious grin, before realising that the lava was approaching him rapidly, and he made the decision to turn and run.

Arcadia had sat down again, waiting, looking over at the plateau, now almost entirely covered in smoke and ash. She could see the orange glow spreading from the lava and hear the roars of creatures being consumed by it. She shivered and looked away, only to come face to face with Suse's frog, that was sat on the rock next to her. It flicked its tongue out and glanced around innocently for a moment. Arcadia sighed. For a moment, she wished she was a frog, with no concerns. It then leapt onto her lap, and she recoiled, quickly deciding that if she was going to be any creature with no concerns, it would be a far less slimy one. She turned back to the scene on the plateau.

"Come on Olose, where are you?" She whispered to herself.

Elsewhere, Nadia, Roxton and Sotobu were running at full pace, dodging stampeding animals and monsters that were also retreating from the lava. They skidded to a stop by the edge of the plateau, seeing the large gap leading across to their only way down. Instantly the others waiting sprang to their feet and ran over.

"Get back!" Nadia cried. They backed away as Sotobu fired the arrow, lodging it in a distant tree. He rapidly tied the rope to another tree on the other side.

"Quickly now!" Snapped Roxton. "Climb!" They began to climb out onto the ropes as quickly as possible.

Arcadia ran to the edge, her bright smile that displayed her perfectly white teeth quickly fading.  
"Olose." She whispered. "Where iss Olose?" She started to scream hysterically. She almost went to climb out on the rope, but Trevia held her back. Nadia got across first (despite struggling a bit with only one arm). As soon as she dropped down, Arcadia rushed her. "Where is he?" She sobbed.

"He's coming, don't worry." Nadia panted. "Was held up by a gigantic monster." Roxton swung down from the rope second, and Saria ran to him, leaping into his arms.  
"Father! You're alright!" She screamed, beaming a smile. Roxton smiled back, holding her tightly.

"Of course I am. Nothing can stop me." He grinned. Sotobu fell off of the rope last, just making it across.

"Stupid rope." He grumbled, getting up, realising nobody cared about his presence anyway. "Stupid people." He mumbled. The frog leapt onto his big foot. "Stupid frog." He muttered, kicking it away. It flew through the air, and in a surprisingly agile leap, Suse caught it. "Stupid mithra." He mumbled.  
"Meanie!" Suse cried, sticking her tongue out at Sotobu. He rose a mighty eyebrow.

"What?" He asked, slightly surprised.

"You're a big fat meanie!" She cried, marching up to him and sticking her tongue out again, this time in his face (or as close to it as she could get).

"Well, diddums." Sotobu shrugged. Suse looked confused.

"What's that mean?" She asked. "What? What? What?" Her voice got more and more irritating with each question.

"Stupid mithra." Sotobu repeated in a grumble.

The jungle was in uproar, not helped any less by a loud scream eminating from Olose as he ran through it as fast as his legs would carry him. The lava was flowing quickly now, and he could feel it catching up with him. He spotted the same gigantic vegetable eating beast he had lost his sword in earlier running equally quickly. He pulled his sword out of its leg as he paused, causing it to falter slightly. He skidded to the edge of the plateau, and saw the rope erected across the chasm. The lava was too close, and the vegetarian monster was getting too close for comfort.

"Oh, to hell with it." Olose grumbled, slicing the rope and using to swing across the gap just as the huge beast got to him. He swung down and slammed into the rock face of the other part of the plateau. "Ow!" He yelped, before he began to climb, scrambling up painfully. The huge creature looked around, and fell off the plateau, rather than be consumed by the lava, plummeting to its death below.

Olose got to his feet and Arcadia dived into his arms, tearfully. He smiled warmly, hugging her. He was dirty and sweaty from the heat and fighting, but Arcadia didn't care. She was just glad to have him in her arms, and still alive. Olose turned to Roxton, who looked far more upset.

"There is goes." He said sadly. "The only proof Gaia ever existed." He paused. "If only we'd been a few hours quicker! I could have had my evidence!" The group turned and watched as the plateau burnt, and saw many of the flying creatures they had battled earlier soaring away, heading off into the distance.

"I have a feeling that they'll always be evidence out there somewhere." Olose panted. "But maybe it's for the best."

"Stealing my points now, Captain?" Nadia smirked.

"I have a question." Trevia told the others.

"What's up, Trevia?" Olose asked, turning with the victorious grin still splattered across his face.

"What the hell arrrrre you all talking about?" She asked, completely lost by all the talk of Gaia. The others laughed.

"It's a long way back to the _Destiny_." Olose gave as an odd answer. "I'll tell you on the way."

The group journeyed for quite some time without resting, all anxious to get back to the _Destiny_, and civilisation. Most of the journey had been filled with Roxton telling tales of his survival on the plateau, and how he had documented it all in a journal he planned to publish. He then realised he had left the journey on the plateau, and it had now been consumed by the flames. He spent much longer complaining. He even contemplated hauling the carcass of the beast that fell from the plateau back to the ship so that he may have evidence of Gaia. Olose explained that the _Destiny _could carry many things, but he wouldn't allow it transport the corpse of a beast from an ancient world, not while he was captain. Roxton fell silent after this. It was Arcadia who finally spoke up again, summing up perfectly exactly where they were.

"Stupid mud." She grumbled, squirming, having sunk in the boggy ground. She couldn't pull her feet out. Olose chuckled and came up behind her, putting his arm gently around her shoulder, and one around her waist, and lifting, picking her up and holding her.

"Guess I'll just have to carry you." He grinned.

"I guess you will." Arcadia smiled, putting her arms around him and kissing him. Olose smiled warmly back, and carried her almost like she was a baby in his arms.

"Yuck." Suse commented. "Icky rrrrromance. You don't like that do you? No you don't!" She told the frog which she held up to her face. It cluelessly blinked around, and let out a ribbit. "That had betterrrrr not have been a yes." She warned. She heard Trevia laughing to his side.

"Do you know what I fancy? Frog legs!" Sotobu roared. "Some good nicely done frog legs!"

"Meanie!" Spat Suse. Sotobu laughed.

"Well, excuse me for being hungry!" He smirked.

"Why did we park so far away?" Saria mumbled, even she was getting fed up with the mass amounts of mud and grimy water the swamp was full of.

"I wonderrrr what poor Phabrrrrrizoe has been up to." Trevia contemplated, before realising that made it seem like she cared. "Urm, just out of currrriosity." She added with a nervous smile. Olose laughed. He was actually very proud of Trevia and the kind of person she had become, having found so much more to her life since she had joined the _Destiny _crew.

Phabrizoe was locked in a deadly game of strategy. He moved his black counter carefully, getting it into position. It was too late when he realised his mistake. He had left himself wide open! He moved his white counter in, and defeated his black counter.

"Looks like I win again!" He cheered, looking down at the game board. He paused. "I also lost." He said bitterly. "Where the hell are the others?" He asked himself, realising just how bored he had become.

"Right here!" Olose grinned, climbing up onto deck. "Mission accomplished!"

"Captain!" Phabrizoe cried happily. "I saw smoke billowing from the plateau. Your fault, I presume?"

"Just an act of Altana." Olose shrugged. The others climbed up behind them, and Phabrizoe smiled, seeing two strangers and figuring out the hume must be Roxton. He also sniggered a little at Arcadia, who looked bizarre, horribly dishevelled from her journey, yet still formally dressed anyway. Luckily she couldn't figure out what Phabrizoe was laughing at.

"This is it?" Sotobu snorted. "What a piece of junk!"

"She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts." Nadia reassured him.

"Hehehe, just like you on the first bit then." He sniggered. Nadia remained calm, and delivered a swift and high kick to the galka's chest, knocking him clean off of the boat. She turned back as if nothing was wrong and nothing was out of place. Trevia clapped.

"Nice kick." She said with an impressed whistle.

"Thanks. It did come off fairly well." Nadia grinned.

"Stupid elvaan!" Sotobu spat from below. Phabrizoe sighed, before suddenly jumping to find a frog in front of his face. Suse held it tightly, waving it around.

"Phabz!" She called. "Meet Fred!" She turned the frog to her face. "Say hello Fred!" The frog let out a slight ribbit. Phabrizoe just blinked, confused.

"Hey! If you're not going to take care of that thing then you can't keep it!" Olose warned.  
"No! I'll look after him!" Suse cried, cuddling it. "And I'll feed it everyday!"

"And take it for walks?" Olose asked sarcastically.

"Very funny." Even Suse figured out he was joking, and so stuck out her tongue as she had a habit of doing. Olose chuckled to himself.

It was later on the ocean, as the _Destiny _sailed towards the shore once more that the group were all gathered around a large table, enjoying dinner together. Roxton had cheered up considerably, despite the fact that he had lost all evidence of Gaia, and they had mostly spent the time laughing, joking and being insulted by Sotobu. Olose had been grinning all the while. Even Arcadia was smiling (even though she felt horrible with the lack of a proper bath being available on the little ship).

"Another mission well done." Olose smiled. "This is what life is about! Adventure!" His grin grew wider. "And reward!"

"Typical." Arcadia sighed sarcastically.

"Can you blame me if I want a reward?" Olose shrugged.

"Here is your reward." Arcadia swooped in and kissed him. Suse sighed, glancing to her frog, which hopped away. Arcadia turned back, and went to eat, but noticed at the last moment that the frog was now sat in the middle of her food. "SUSE!" She bellowed, and the others fell about laughing. Their mission was over, and the trip back seemed set to be amusing.


	33. Kingdom

**Author's Note: Another done in a day chapter! And updated far earlier than normal (it's not even evening yet!) I might actually be getting back into my old writing habits (just as I decide to slip out of them). This chapter is a bit of a rip off, to be honest, as is the whole new plot. It actually deals with events that I've heard briefly of in FFXI lore, and my version of them, but is clearly inspired by one source, and less clearly by another. I'll explain that at the end, without ruining too much.**

**But in a main point, this deals with San d'Oria, and I know some things here I've severely improvised/just plain made up, but due to how long before FFXI it's set, I feel I can get away with that (for example, the Royal Guard's uniforms are nothing like they're supposed to be).**

**Oh, and sorry for _more _author's notes (there's one at the end as well). I think I just like talking.**

**CHAPTER 33**

**KINGDOM**

Four elvaans charged across the battlefield, and dived for shelter behind a hill. War gripped the Konschtat Highlands as Bastok and San d'Oria fought. It was the second time that battle had gripped the highlands, and this time San d'Oria were strictly losing. The King himself had ridden out with his troops, but all now was lost. The four elvaans hidden, dressed in the black tunics of the King's Royal Guard, bearing the royal emblem on the front, a large white cross surrounded by a gold aura, and entirely faithful to their king and country. They were the best of the best, but knew in their hearts they had failed. They were cut off from the King, the man they swore to protect, and the Bastokian cannons were ripping across the highlands, making them certain it was only a matter of time before they, and their king, were dead.

"It is over, my friends." Panted one of the four elvaan. He was fairly short, and actually quite fat, but that didn't affect his combat ability like some might assume. "We might as well get this over with. Let's charge the cannons and die in a blaze of glory." He went to get up casually, as if his choice of action was a matter of fact. Another of the elvaan guards pulled him back down.

"No!" He snapped. This elvaan was much taller, and fairly well built. His greying hairs also marked him as the oldest and the special crest on his right breast as the leader of the four, the Captain of the Royal Guard. "We have taken a vow to protect our king, no matter what. And protect him we shall."

"But the King's regiment is cut off!" The youngest of the four spoke up, once just a youth taken under their wing, but now easily one of the most capable in the entire ranks of the Royal Guard, a mix of experience and young age made him a deadly soldier. "We cannot reach him!"

"We must!" The captain cried passionately.

"He is right." Conceded the fourth, a fairly gentle looking man, considering he was soldier. "We cannot abandon our king."

"That requires a charge across the entire highlands." The fat elvaan explained. "Past the cannons, through the soldiers, and to the other side. Even if we were to make it, all we would achieve is to die by the King's side."

"Surely that is our duty?" Smiled the captain. The fat one grumbled.

"Yes. It is." He muttered.

"Let's do it." Sighed the youngest, before ducking down hearing the cannons roar once more. He swung his sword down, and the others lowered their swords, clashing them together. "For our King."

"For our country." The captain said proudly.

"For our loved ones back home." The gentle looking one decided.

"For everything we're leaving behind." The fat one boomed.

"All for one!" The captain vowed, a deadly serious look in his eyes.

"And one for all!" The other three cried in unison.

"CHARGE!"

The four drew their sounds and ran up over the bank, letting out a cry as they charged, cannons thundering all around them. The Konschtat Highlands were huge, and reaching the other side where they believed the King and his regiment to be pinned down would not be easy. It was the captain who died first, the ground exploding and sending him flying.

"NO!" Screamed the youthful one, turning back to help him. A cannon impacted next to him and sent him flying away, crashing down painfully. The gentle looking one felt a bullet from the newly developed rifles of Bastok pierce his heart and he went down. Those rifles had been the bane of the elvaans during this prolonged battle, and now they had claimed another victim. The fatter one let out a final cry of rage, having seen his friends fallen.

"ALL FOR ONE!" He screamed again, charging, before feeling the bullets rip through him, and dropping down.

The best of the Royal Guard of San d'Oria were gone. The King was cut off, and presumed dead. Elvaan corpses were scattered across the highlands, all dead, no match for the industrial might of Bastok. Bastok had triumphed in the Second Battle of Konschtat, and the war was over. San d'Oria had lost.

Olose Sampson ran down the large steps that led to the second level of Arcadia's manor. He skidded to the bottom and saw that she seemed to be preparing to leave.

"Where are you going?" He asked quickly.

"San d'Oria." She replied sleepily.

"What? Why? Why wasn't I told?" Olose snapped, slipping into his role as overprotective bodyguard. "And why do you look so tired?"

"The war has ended, and San d'Oria has surrendered to Bastok." She explained. "I stayed up all last night waiting for the final reports. King Richard is still missing, and San d'Oria is in inner turmoil. They think civil war is brewing."

"Civil war? But-" Olose paused. "What happened, exactly?"

"The King left to fight in the wars personally, he did not want to see his troops suffer while he sat back. During the final battle in the Konschtat Highlands, he was lost. Nobody has found him, or heard from him." She explained, but saw that Olose didn't quite appreciate the problem. "The King is yet to bare any heirs, and in light of that, the Cardinal has decided to take control of San d'Oria. The problem lies in the fact that it was the Cardinal who was left in charge when the King departed."

"So?" Olose shrugged. "From what I've heard the Cardinal is a kind and forgiving man." Olose paused. "For an elvaan." He added with a grin.

"Some people are theorising that the reason the elvaans lost the battle at Konschtat is because their armies were cut off from supplies. It seems somebody at San d'Oria stopped sending support, and the only person with that much authority is the Cardinal."

"Almost as if he wanted the King to die, so that he could take control of San d'Oria." Olose finally understood. "But that means he slaughtered hundreds of elvaans just to take the throne."

"Exactly." Arcadia said with a stern look upon her face.

"How do you know all this? And why are you walking into the middle of it?" Olose asked quickly.

"Lord Tarrak sent me a letter." She held it up as proof.

"Haven't seen him in years." Olose smiled in reflection.

"Indeed. He is rather worried. His son was a royal guard, but he hasn't returned yet, and he feels he was slain. And now the city is in uproar. He is due to be hanged. His last request was to send a letter to me." Arcadia explained.

"Hanged?" Olose exclaimed. "What? Why?"

"He tried to attack the Cardinal for vengeance." Arcadia answered, almost guiltily. "I feel if I go to San d'Oria, my presence as a hume will make him reconsider."

"The elvaans don't exactly respect humes." Olose pointed out.

"No, but in light of their defeat by Bastok, they cannot harm me, and must respect my wishes. Especially with the high status I carry." She nodded to her servant, who began to load her suitcases.

"And you forgot to tell me this?" Olose asked sceptically.

"I felt you would worry needlessly." Arcadia replied.  
"You're walking into a city on the verge of civil war, reeling from a defeat by a nation comprised of the same race as you! Of course I'm worried! Anything could happen!" Olose cried. "I'm your bodyguard Arcadia! I also love you! I will protect you no matter what!" Arcadia smiled slightly.

"Then get packed." She shot.

In the mighty Chateau d'Oraguille a lone figure in a black tunic approached the Cardinal, a powerful looking man with an expertly trimmed white beard and long flowing red robes. He was sat on the throne of the King, and raised an eyebrow curiously at the approaching figure. He was limping badly, apparently very injured, and his black tunic, the uniform of the Royal Guard of San d'Oria, was badly torn.

"Ah, I was under the impression that the Royal Guard were all wiped out." The Cardinal spoke in a soft and concerned voice. "It is good to see you alive! I pray, is there any news of the King?" The royal guard looked up, a youthful figure, and somebody who had seen his three best friends murdered in war just days ago.

"None, your eminence." The guard replied coldly.

"Lieutenant Dartian, wasn't it?" The Cardinal inquired, recognising the man from the many fights he had gotten in with the Cardinal's own Temple Knights. "Yes, yes it was. Dartian Loneheart. I am glad to see your alive, but sorry to inform you that you are the last of the Royal Guards." A slight smile crept across the Cardinal's features, and there seemed to be something sinister in his manner. "Therefore, I have no choice but to disband them."

"There will always be more men willing to take a place at the King's side." Dartian shot.

"My Temple Knights are the new reigning authority in San d'Oria." The Cardinal stated. "You may apply for a place amongst them if you wish to continue protecting your ruler."

"Your eminence, I was under the impression that the Temple Knights protected the Cardinal, and not the King." Dartian said dryly.

"I am afraid they have become one and the same." The Cardinal answered, putting as much effort into sounding sorrowful as possible. "With the King gone, I am the only logical leader, and we must have a leader to prevent anarchy."

"I believe, your eminence, that the royal constitution is very specific on these matters." Dartian explained. "The King is missing, but not proven dead. You cannot seize the crown until it is confirmed he is dead, or he has been missing for more than a month, without any signs of life. Even then, your seizure with need to be relinquished if he ever returns."

"I do not take the crown because I want it, but because we need a leader." The Cardinal sounded hurt by Dartian's explanation, sensing his motive. "A meeting of Lords has decided to shorten that time to a week. In these hard times we need a leader and we cannot wait. Once I am in charge, I shall have full authority. Again, the King returning would just add turmoil to the proceedings, and we cannot afford turmoil as of this moment. San d'Oria is currently much too fragile." Dartian went to protest, and the Cardinal raised a hand . "It is not my choice that I take these duties. Please, I am doing this for San d'Oria."

"I'm sure you are, your eminence." Dartian spat. "I bid you farewell. I am still a Royal Guard of San d'Oria, at least until this week of yours is up, and I shall continue to serve my King, the true ruler of the elvaan lands. I believe he still lives, and I believe he will take the throne. Good day, your eminence." Dartian turned and left. The Cardinal paused.

He extended his arm and gestured forth one of his Temple Knights. She was a woman in her thirties, tall, and she looked to be very strong.

"Sir?" The Temple Knight inquired.

"Captain d'Mil." The Cardinal spoke slowly. "I believe that man may be a problem. See to it that he does not leave San d'Oria, or perform any acts that could be interpreted as-" He paused, searching for the right word. "-treason, against our new regime."

"Yes, your eminence." Bowed Captain d'Mil.

Olose smiled warmly, looking down at Arcadia, who had fallen asleep against him in the carriage. The long night she had spent awake previously had clearly gotten the better of her, and she was now sleeping peacefully. She looked as beautiful as ever, choosing to wear a white dress in a display of peace, in case any of the elvaans misinterpreted the reasons a hume would visit San d'Oria, but was otherwise dressed as she always was. She stirred slightly, clearly having a dream of some kind, and in the process of moving ended up forcing one of her long diamond earrings to jab herself. She sprang awake and Olose chucked. She rubbed her neck where the earring had dug into her.

"Teaches you for wearing those things." Olose commented. It was a well known fact Olose hated her wearing expensive jewels, he always saw it as making her a target for every thief in every city or town they entered.

"Where are we?" She asked groggily. "And why did you let me fall to sleep? I told you to make sure I stayed awake!"

"But you looked so peaceful." Olose told her. "Besides, you clearly needed it. We're approaching San d'Oria now."

"Good. We have to get their soon. I do not know when they are planning to hang Lord Tarrak, but we must stop them." Arcadia paused, deep with concern. "He has done much for me in the past, I cannot allow him to die."

"I understand." Olose smiled. He loved it when Arcadia showed such deep concern, as self-centred as her vanity could sometimes seem, she deeply cared for others, and Olose was always glad to see this.

Dartian marched to the southern gate of San d'Oria, but two Temple Knights stood in his way.

"I'm afraid Cardinal Treville has decreed that you are not to leave the city." The first spoke.  
"I am on a mission to find and save King Richard, who has more authority than Cardinal Treville, I do believe." Dartian bitterly smiled.

"The King is dead. Long live the Cardinal." Announced the second Temple Knight, drawing his sword.

"If this is how you want to play it, then it's fine by me." Dartian drew his sword, slicing upwards and cutting through the first guard, who was still drawing his sword. He turned around and blocked the onslaught of attacks from the second, stumbling back. He blocked upwards, and dove behind the Temple Knight, pulling on the back of his red tunic (much like the tunic of the Royal Guard, but red, and with the Cardinal's emblem as opposed to the King). The Temple Knight fell backwards, and landed on his back. Dartian ran up the nearest watchtower where three Temple Knights were on guard. They all drew their swords, and let out an innocent smile. "Hi." He waved, just as they all attacked, driving him back. He blocked their blows, but couldn't get in a good attack. He managed to swipe at one's shins, which allowed him to counterattack the others.

The Temple Knight he had tripped up below raced up the watchtower, seeing Dartian fight off three of his colleagues at once. He let out a cry and charged Dartian, tackling him. The two stumbled back and fell off of the wall, tumbling down and crashing down outside San d'Oria.

Dartian groaned in pain, barely able to move. The Temple Knight who had landed on top of him managed to get up, considerably less injured. He held his sword to Dartian's neck.

"For the Cardinal." He smiled, lifting the blade. He went to swing it down but it never made contact with Dartian's neck. He was tacked and knocked unconscious in seconds.

Dartian rolled his neck, and could see a carriage pulled by chocobos had stopped on the road not far from him. The door was open, and he could make out a girl sat inside. He rolled his head back, and could see his saviour. A fairly short man dressed in a beaten brown jacket with long wavy black hair.

"Are you alright?" He asked quickly. Dartian blacked out before he could reply.

**Author's Note: Right, now for the stuff I didn't want to explain at the start so I didn't ruin anything. Yes, I know (or at least am fairly certain) that San d'Oria doesn't have a Cardinal. But this is set far far before, so I figure I can get away with it. Also this is the first story in a _long _time without Olose's crew, but that's because I felt I could do a tighter narrative without them. Although there's Dartian as a new character to replace them. Oh, and in case you were wondering, this may be a rip off, but Dartian is _not _my horrific attempt at spelling D'Artagnan, the fourth musketeer. In case you didn't know, because not everyone will be aware of the story, this story is a bit like the Three Musketeers, or at least slightly inspired by it. The other inspiration is in fact Robin Hood, and the idea of trying to reinstate the King before somebody else takes over, hence the King being named 'Richard'. And the Cardinal being named 'Treville' is actually a homage to the Three Musketeers, Treville was a character in that, even if he wasn't the Cardinal.**

**So that's right, once again I've ripped off things to make my own story. Although this time it wasn't that planned, I wanted to do a story featuring the King of San d'Oria, and trying to stop somebody overthrowing the throne because I thought it would be quite interesting, which made me think of Robin Hood, and then to get the feel of it, I watched Man in the Iron Mask before writing it, and realised I could make it feel a bit like The Three Musketeers, hence this happened. So sorry for yet another blatant rip off! Hopefully it'll work better than the last story arc, which I struggled with a bit.**


	34. Rescue

**Author's Note: I'm a little surprised by the reaction at just how much of a rip off this is, to be honest. Especially to the extent that Dark Axem said 'I was just able to predict almost all of it' because the plot I follow is _not _the plot of the Three Musketeers at all. I simply took the idea of a Cardinal trying to usurp a King. The plot in the Three Musketeers (which I haven't read all of, I must confess, so this is what I guess from what I did read) is that a young man travels to a city to join the royal guard (musketeers), and ends up making three loyal friends, who then get into fights against the men belonging to the Cardinal who has plans to blackmail the King (or the Queen at least) into giving up the throne.**

**This plot is that a war has left a city without its King, and in light of this, the Cardinal attempts to take the throne by using the crisis as an excuse. However, there's no evidence that the King is dead, and the last surviving Royal Guard teams up with a traveller (Olose), who has come to stop the execution of his friend, to try and find the King before its too late and the Cardinal takes control.**

**As you can see, the plots are entirely different. They have a similar set up, but that's for a few reasons. According to FFXI lore that I read in research for this story (yeah, I know, I'm impressed I did any kind of thinking too!) San d'Oria got plunged into civil war after it lost to Bastok. I decided to take this idea and see what I could do. I thought the idea of the Temple Knights _and _the Royal Guard was interesting, so set them against each other, the church versus the crown, as it were. I also wanted to have the royalty of San d'Oria being the good guys for once, too often they're the bad guys, so I tried to change that.**

**  
The actual plot takes more from Robin Hood than the Three Musketeers! A missing King, somebody taking charge, and somebody making trouble for that guy. Now, I'm always the first to admit I _am _ripping things off, but I just wanted to explain (I hope I don't seem too arrogant) that I did think the storylines were different, and I wasn't just telling the Three Musketeers in FFXI. Although I did steal 'all for one and one for all', but that's because that's actually one of my favourite quotes, one I really like to believe in.**

**Oh, and Dark Axem, you said if d'Mil was the guy with the eye patch, the answer is no, she's not. I needed a captain of the Temple Knights, so made up a character. I then tried to come up with an elvaan sounding name (since Treville for the Cardinal and Richard for the King were not!) so made it 'd'Mil' which I got by taking 'd'Oria' and trying to create something that sounds similar. To be honest, I can't even remember the guy with the eye patch past vague images from a movie I saw years ago ( a really crappy version of the Three Musketeers). But no, she's not supposed to be him at all. For starters, she's female (I needed another female character in this story, they were all male for the most part), and also I wanted her to be a bit of a tough character to work out, after all, she's only following her orders, but being ordered to do bad things. Will she turn good? Urm, I haven't decided yet.**

**And you definitely haven't seen the last of the crew! That's all I'm saying though.**

**I hope I don't seem too arrogant about my own ideas here, or not too defensive or hostile. I just wanted to explain the differences, mainly because I'm worried. If it's too much of a rip off, I know people won't enjoy reading it, and I really appreciate everybody who reads, so want to make sure you enjoy it. This means I wanted to explain how I saw it, then see if anybody can offer any advice on improving it so it isn't such a rip off so that people _can _enjoy it, or whether it's okay once I explain it's not supposed to be the same plot. So hopefully I wasn't too arrogant or anything, I'm the first to admit I steal far far too much and aren't actually a very good writer, so please don't read it that way. I just wanted to see if people understood what I was doing with the plot, and whether you guys think its still too much of a rip off.**

**That's a long author's note, so I'll be quiet now. Sorry if I sounded like I was attacking my reviewers or being really arrogant, I'm just looking for help in getting this good! Anyway, I'll shut up.**

**CHAPTER 34**

**RESCUE**

Dartian opened his eyes painfully. His body was aching all over. His memories slowly filtered back into his head and he remembered exactly what had happened previously.

"Where am I?" He asked quickly.

"Lord Tarrak's manor." Came a casual reply. "Your safe."

"Tarrak?" Gasped Dartian. "Father!"

"Father?" The figure turned around; it was Olose. "You're Tarrak's son?"

"Yeah. Where is he? What's happening?" Dartian sat up in bed painfully.

"He's due to be hanged. When he found out you were dead he tried to set things right between him and the Cardinal." Olose explained. Dartian paused.

"We must save him!" Dartian began to get up.

"Hold on a second, you're supposed to be dead. What happened?" Olose asked.

"My entire regiment were wiped out. The Royal Guard is no more, I am the last. The King is still missing. I suppose the Cardinal assumed I died with the regiment, I only made it back to the city yesterday." Dartian explained.

"Well, that makes sense." Olose shrugged. "But we have to stop the Cardinal from hanging your father."

"On what grounds has he been arrested?" Dartian asked.

"Attempted assassination." Olose admitted. "Which is why we must save him through force and force alone!"

"Allow me to help." Dartian offered. "I'm pretty handy with a sword." Olose examined Dartian's blade in the corner of the room. It was unusually thin; a rapier. "They're the best duelling blades in existence." He explained. "That's why we don't wear armour. We want to move quickly, and use speed."

"Here we will be against many opponents." Olose told him. "A duelling blade is not the best."

"It's what the Temple Knights use." Dartian pointed out.

"Either way, I think you should stay here. I can save your father, but you will probably be more useful if you do not get involved. You haven't committed any real crimes, have you?" Olose could tell that his scuffle with the Temple Knights hadn't been a major one for committing a serious crime.

"No. I was attacked because I tried to leave the city." Dartian answered.

"Then you are still innocent, and the Cardinal will find you much harder to deal with in that state." Olose pointed out. "And he'll have a hard time catching me. Besides, you still need rest."

"I'm fine." Dartian snapped.

"You don't look it, you took quite a fall, and we can't all be immortal." Dartian shot him a puzzled glance. "Arcadia will take care of you. She's downstairs at the moment looking over the details of the execution."

"Lady Arcadia?" Dartian repeated. "Wow. I haven't seen her since I was-" He made an appropriate height with his hands. Olose laughed.

"Yes. I remember last time he met Tarrak he said that you were too young to fight." Olose explained. "You've come quite far in these last few years."

"Save my father." Dartian told him. "And then together we can find the King and restore him to the throne."

"It is possible the King _is _dead, in which case we shall have a severe problem." Olose said bluntly.

"There is still another possibility. But for now, you should focus on the original task at hand." Dartian decided. Olose paused. Another possibility? He shook his head, deciding to focus on that at a later date.

"Right. I'll be back when I have your father. But from there we'll have to move rapidly. The Temple Knights will doubtlessly come here searching for him." Olose guessed.

"True. We'll move across town. I know a place we can hide out." Dartian explained.

"Right. I'll see you later." Olose grinned. "This should be interesting."

Arcadia heard somebody thunder down the stairs rapidly. That could only be Olose. He ran into the room and skidded to a stop.

"Olose." Arcadia said almost wearingly.

"Anything I need to know?" He asked, clearly hyper with energy.

"Only that it takes place in an hour." Arcadia told him. "And that the mightiest of the Temple Knights shall be there."

"Let's see if these elvaans live up to their reputation then." Olose laughed.

"No killing!" Arcadia warned. "These people are confused. They are only doing what they think is right."

"I know, I know." Olose sighed. "I'll do my best to not hurt any too badly." Arcadia gave him a stare that told him she didn't entirely trust his judgement. "I'll be fine. Just tend to Dartian, and make sure you're ready to leave when I get back." Arcadia stood, and nodded.

"I shall." She agreed.

"Right. I'll be back before you know it." He smiled. He turned and exited, and Arcadia watched longingly for a moment, hoping that he wouldn't do anything stupid.

Captain d'Mil stood holding out a long parchment in front of the crowd, and read from it in her most formal tone of voice.

"For the crime of attempted assassination of his eminence, the Cardinal Treville, Lord Tarrak Loneheart is to be hung until dead." She read, before folding up the parchment again and wondering just what the point in it was. "Commence the execution." She ordered to a largely built man in a brown executioner's mask. He nodded and stepped in, but before he got there an arrow thudded down in front of him. He looked up, startled. The shooter was in plain view.

"Not so fast." He warned. Multiple elvaan archers drew their bows and fired arrows at him. The shooter leapt from the castle wall on which he was stood and sailed down, crashing into the crowd. He ran through the crowd and burst up onto the platform. D'Mil drew her sword, and attacked. The figure drew his own and blocked, backing away. The executioner came up behind him and grabbed him over the arms, pinning him. The figure smirked.

Olose burst out of his grip as he forced his muscles outwards with incredible strength. The executioner stumbled backwards. Olose leapt into the air and delivered a roundhouse kick to his head, knocking him clean off of the platform and to the ground below. Tarrak watched in shock, still with the rope hooked around his neck. D'Mil ran in, and kicked away the stool on which he was stood, causing him to drop. Olose swung his blade and cut the rope, and he landed below.

"Do not interfere in our affairs, rebel!" D'Mil cried. "Surrender now and we shall grant you a quick death."

"I am no rebel." Olose grinned. "My name is Olose Sampson, and I'm loyal to the one true King of San d'Oria." Honestly, he was just involved to save a friend, but he thought it sounded cool.

"You have broken the law and will be pay!" D'Mil spat. "Seize him!" Temple Knights began to run up to the platform. Olose smiled, spinning his blade and moving in to attack them.

They ran up the steps as quickly as they could, but Olose made sure they didn't get far, sweeping down with his sword and cutting the steps away so that they collapsed. D'Mil let out an angry cry from behind, and charged Olose. Olose swung aside, blocking her attacks. She fought with a rapier, and was much faster than Olose, her red Temple Knight tunic flowing behind her as she jabbed at him. Olose took each hit undeterred and began to fight back.

"Surrender." Olose warned. "I only want my friend's freedom."  
"Impossible." She panted, unable to understand how Olose was still standing. "You _will _die!" She attacked him again, but this time Olose dove past the blade and elbowed her in the face. She stumbled back and fell off of the platform, crashing down in the crowd. Olose jumped off of the platform, ready to look for Tarrak.

To his surprise Tarrak was stood next to the fallen body of the executioner, who had been soundly defeated in combat, beneath the platform.  
"Well, this certainly is exciting." He grinned to Olose. Olose laughed.

"C'mon, we have to get out of here!" Olose signalled.

"Any plans?" Tarrak asked as the Temple Knights began to surround them.

"Many." Olose answered, slashing at the two structural supports of the execution platform. It fell forwards, its supports gone, and the gallows built on it slid off, crashing down on the knights. Olose gestured the other way, and they ran into the crowd, still being pursued.

Olose led Tarrak out of the grounds of the castle and into the street. Temple Knights blocked their way, apparently having heard the commotion. Olose drew his sword, and Tarrak readied his own one he had borrowed.

"So, who are you?" Tarrak asked casually as the knights dove in to attack.

"Olose Sampson, at your service." Olose answered.

"Sampson?" Tarrak exclaimed. "But you don't look anything like him!" He blocked an attack and swung around, slicing one of the guards legs.

"Long story." Olose shrugged, ducking a blade and blocking another behind him, before kicking one of the knights down. "Werewolf regeneration. It's a bit odd."

"I'll say!" Tarrak exclaimed as he fought back another knight. "Oh, come on! What does the Cardinal teach you?" He taunted his attackers, forcing them away. "I used to be a Royal Guard you know, in my younger days. You fools are nothing!" He knocked another one away. "You must have got lucky when you stopped me!"

"Your son lives." Olose quickly told him. "The only survivor. We've still heard nothing from the King."

"You hear that?" He cried to the Temple Knights. "My son lives! The Royal Guard are not eliminated yet! And the Cardinal will not take San d'Oria as long as he lives!" He kicked another back.

"That alleyway!" Olose cried, pointing to a darkened path. "Now!" The two bolted into it and the Temple Knight gave chase as fast as they could.

Arcadia eyed the bowl of hot soup, and tried to decide if she had done everything right. Tarrak's servants had left since he was arrested, leaving her to make something for Dartian by herself. She wasn't sure how she had fared, but it looked and smelled edible, which means she decided it was worth feeding to Dartian in an effort to restore his strength. She walked out of the kitchen area, struggling to keep the soup balanced on the tray she held. She reached the staircase when the door behind her was kicked down. She spun around started.

An elvaan women, dressed in the tunic of the Temple Guard, marched in. She drew her sword.

"A hume?" She remarked, surprised. "I should have guessed that Bastok was involved in this crime!"

"Crime? Bastok?" Arcadia stuttered. "I am Lady Arcadia De Lily, from Tavnazia. I know nothing of this crime you speak of."

"You lie poorly girl." The elvaan woman, clearly Captain d'Mil, told Arcadia. "I assume however, by the lack of anybody coming to your rescue, that your friend and the escaped assassin have not returned here yet. Therefore, I shall wait, and then kill them upon arrival." Arcadia peered down at the soup in her hands.

"I cannot let you do that." She said calmly, before throwing the hot liquid all over d'Mil. She screeched as it burnt her, and Arcadia ran up the staircase as fast as she could run, helplessly tripping over her dress as she neared the top. D'Mil ran after her, drawing her sword. Arcadia turned around, being lifted to her feet in surprise. Dartian moved her aside, and then drew his sword.

"Captain d'Mil." He smiled from the top of the stairs. "How's it going?"

"Stand down Dartian, and I will spare your life!" She spat.  
"I'm afraid I appear to have the high ground, Santia." He used her first name, just as she had used his. "Combat 101, you could be in trouble."

"You are just a lowly lieutenant and I am a captain." D'Mil laughed. "You can't win."

"Actually, I'm now Captain of the Royal Guard of San d'Oria, and that makes me above you and your Temple Knights." D'Mil paused, listening to Dartian speak.

"The King has not been found. The Cardinal and the Temple Knights rule at the moment." She explained. "I am only doing my duty, and you are plotting to free an assassin. I have vowed to protect the Cardinal, as you have vowed to protect your King. If that man had attempted to assassinate the King, you would have no hesitations." D'Mil stood, sword in her hand, staring into Dartian's eyes.

"You are an aide to the Cardinal. You could make him stop this madness! He wants to rule all of San d'Oria and you know it!" Dartian cried.

"He will not listen to me. I am just a knight." D'Mil told him.  
"So that makes it alright then, to go about and help his stamp on our crown and our beliefs, and take over?" Dartian asked. D'Mil paused.

"I serve him loyally!" D'Mil finally decided. "It is my duty."

"You'll serve him better in one piece." Came a voice from the bottom of the stairs. D'Mil spun around. Olose and Tarrak stood there, swords drawn. Olose had that irritating grin splattered across his face.

Olose spun the blade in his hand and held it extended. Tarrak stood as backup. Dartian smiled, trying not to be distracted by seeing his father again.

"You serve the Cardinal, but you will not if you are dead. So return to him." Dartian told d'Mil. "Do not stay here and die. Go back to the Cardinal and tell him what you wish. Perhaps you'll tell him we bested you, or perhaps you'll lie, say we weren't here, it'll come off better for you that way." D'Mil dropped her sword with a sigh.

"You haven't won." D'Mil told them. "I uphold peace for the Cardinal. You disrupt that peace. That makes you my enemy. Next time I will not come alone." Her words were brave, but the speed at which she left suggested she was not as courageous she claimed.

Tarrak ran and embraced his son as soon as she was gone. Arcadia ran into Olose's arms.

"Are you alright?" Arcadia, Olose, Tarrak and Dartian asked in perfect synch, causing them to laugh slightly.

"Son, I'm so glad your safe." Tarrak said warmly to Dartian.

"You're one to speak!" Laughed Dartian. "What were you thinking, attacking the Cardinal!"

"Somebody has to end his madness!" Tarrak replied. "I thought he had you killed."

"Had me killed?" Dartian repeated, confused.

"He sent no reinforcements, no food, no new weapons, while the King was out on the battlefield. Like he wanted him to lose the battle." Tarrak explained.

"He threw the war with Bastok just so that he could take over?" Dartian cried in surprise. "Damn him! My friends, they're dead because of him!"

"Exactly. That is why we must stop him." Tarrak told his son.

"We cannot harm him, that would make us enemies of San d'Oria. We must restore the King!" Dartian cried.

"That means we need to find him, if he's still alive." Olose sighed. "You said there was another option."

"There is another who is destined to take the crown, but I do not know if it is wise." Dartain told Olose. Olose paused.

"Destined? So the King _does _have an heir?" Olose sounded quite surprised.

"Yes. But I do not know if it is a good idea. I suppose I should explain." Dartian began.

"Yes." Arcadia said bluntly. "I never knew the King had a son. I would have thought I would have heard." Dartian chuckled.

"He doesn't have a son." He laughed.

"But you just said-" Arcadia began.  
"He has a daughter." He smiled as he saw Arcadia's 'oh, of course, why didn't I think of that?' reaction. "But there is a complication. Allow me to explain." Arcadia and Olose sat on the stairs, waiting patiently to hear the problem.


	35. Complications

**Author's Note: Here's another note, I make far too many of these! Just wanted to say to Dark Axem that he has nothing to apologise for, I didn't take his comments in a bad way, I was just worried that people might not enjoy the story, so outlined all the differences to see if was enough. I didn't mean it in a bad way towards you Dark Axem, and I really appreciate you reading and reviewing, so sorry if it seemed like I was having a go at you or something! I really didn't mean too!**

**This chapter also introduces a new character, the elvaan Princess (named Princess Astra, that name is familiar to me, but I have no idea why, any ideas?). I tried to do something really different for her (which is kind of central to the plot), so I wonder how it came out. Should make for an interesting (if not extremely difficult to write in situations) character.**

**Anyway, that's enough teasing. Here's the chapter! At least things should be harder to predict now, not even I know where they're going yet.**

**CHAPTER 35**

**COMPLICATIONS**

"The Queen gave birth to a daughter almost eighteen years ago." Dartian explained.

"Eighteen? But that would make her plenty old enough to rule. That solves all of our problems." Olose said with a confused shrug.

"Not exactly." Dartian said.  
"Perhaps it's easier for me to explain." Tarrak laughed. "I was on duty that night, after all. Although I fail to see how it can help us." He paused, before going into a full explanation. "The Queen had been pregnant for some time, and it became apparent she was to give birth that night. I was on duty, head of the Royal Guard that night, and watched as they delivered the baby. It became apparent that the Queen had given birth early, and her daughter was born far too small, incredibly underweight, at first we were worried she would die. But she was taken to the best hospital in the whole of San d'Oria, and she pulled through. She lived, but she suffered from an illness like none we had ever seen. At first we all thought it was a side effect of being born so early, but it quickly became apparent that she wasn't going to recover."

"What illness?" Arcadia asked, sounding concerned. "Why have I not heard about it? I thought it would have been common knowledge."

"Her illness was very strange. She was unbelievably weak, unable to even hold herself standing for longer than a few minutes at the most. She would fall to sleep regularly, unable to keep up with the energy it took to merely stay functioning." Tarrak explained.

"There's no way she could lead like that." Olose stated the obvious.

"No. That's why she wasn't kept in San d'Oria. Eventually it became apparent she could not be cured, nor could she ever take over the kingdom. For her safety, the King had her moved to a country house, a manor where she would be waited on by servants who would do everything they could to make her life enjoyable and peaceful until the day she died." Tarrak told Olose and Arcadia, Arcadia looked more surprised than Olose.

"I remember now." Arcadia stated. "That the Queen gave birth to a Princess, but she died."

"She didn't." Dartian laughed. "That's the girl you've just heard about. The King pretended she was dead to keep her safe, there was no way she could lead or deal with the burden of royalty, so he sent her away from it. He loved his daughter more than he cared about the family line, you see."

"How does this help us? You said yourself, she's not fit to rule." Olose pointed out.

"Ah, but as long as there is an heir to the throne, the Cardinal cannot take it." Dartian smiled. "Which means we need to go and pick her up, and bring her here."

"Whoa, hold on." Olose said, holding up his hands. "If what you've told me is true, is that entirely a good idea?"

"Not in the slightest." Dartian confessed. "But without her, the Cardinal can just take over at the end of the week. She's our only chance of delaying him."

"He'll doubtlessly say she's unfit to rule and try to take over anyway." Tarrak told the group. "But it'll buy us some time."

"Some time to do what?" Arcadia asked, sounding more and more concerned.

"Find the King and restore him. Or at least prove to the people the Cardinal is unfit to rule." Dartian shrugged.

"And start a civil war?" Olose warned.

"We have to stop him from taking over. It's as simple as that." Tarrak stated firmly. "Now, I suggest we discuss this elsewhere. That lovely Temple Knight will be back soon with an army, and we're going to be in trouble."

Captain d'Mil approached the Cardinal, who had risen from the King's throne to meet her.

"Did you catch the criminals today?" He asked bluntly.  
"No, they evaded me." D'Mil answered, ashamed. "I'm sorry." She blurted out. "I hadn't expected-"

"There is no need to apologise." The Cardinal smiled. "I am sure you did your best."

"I think they seek to restore the King." She told him. "At least, that is what it appeared to be. They may be rogues, but their intentions are honourable."

"Of course they are." The Cardinal gave a fatherly smile. "But at times such as these, it cannot be allowed."  
"The King is the true ruler." D'Mil said awkwardly. "He should be in charge."

"I know that." The Cardinal said warmly. "But he is not here, and we are still reeling from war. We need a leader and cannot have the masses waiting on a figure who may not return."

"I understand, your eminence." D'Mil bowed. "I shall gather my troops and catch the criminals. Sorry if I was seen as disrespectful."

"You have nothing to apologise for." The Cardinal laughed. "Now please, catch and punish those responsible. It pains me to order such punishment, but we must appear forceful to maintain a control over the population."

"I understand, your eminence. I shall get to it right away." D'Mil turned and exited, and the Cardinal allowed himself a grin.

Arcadia shuffled on the uncomfortable tavern seat. They were all hunched over a table in the darkest corner of the dingiest tavern they could find, and Arcadia felt very uncomfortable.

"So, what now?" Olose asked.

"Somebody needs to go and pick up the Princess." Dartian decided.

"Send me." Arcadia volunteered. "I am more of a liability than anything staying here, and I'm used to interacting with the higher social classes. I should be able to handle talking to the Princess."

"She's a little different from who you are used to." Tarrak smiled. "I haven't seen her since she was sent out there, but remember, she's had no interaction with the outside world, and is barely strong enough to move. She's going to need constant care just to survive the trip back to San d'Oria."

"I shall be able to handle it." Arcadia nodded. "You need to stay here, and disrupt whatever the Cardinal is planning."

"Arcadia's right." Olose admitted reluctantly. "We're more capable in combat than she is, and it looks like things are about to become very combative around here."

"The ability to fight is not the only thing that is important." Arcadia said proudly.

"Perhaps not. Fine. Arcadia, you need to find the Princess. Tarrak, tell her everything you know about this girl and where to find her. Then, Arcadia, you take our carriage with our driver there and pick her up, with whoever else she needs to care for her on the journey. We'll stay here and see what we can do about the Cardinal." Olose outlined his plan of action.

"I shall depart also." Tarrak decided. "And head to the highlands in search of evidence as to what happened to the King. If he is dead, we need to alter our plans quite drastically."

"Good idea, that leaves the two of us-" Olose gestured to Dartian and himself, "-to try and stop the Cardinal from taking over the whole elvaan nation."  
"I am beginning to see why you are a captain." Arcadia said softly.

"Now, let's get to work!" Olose cheered.

It was some time later when Arcadia was sat in the carriage heading towards the Princess's hiding place. She overlooked the papers Tarrak had given her on the girl. Her name was Princess Astra. A fairly pretty name, Arcadia thought, suitable for a princess. There wasn't much on her, except those who had talked to her said she was a gentle soul who had utterly failed to be corrupted by the world she knew so little about. Arcadia didn't know how she would respond to being told she had to bear the burden of saving a whole kingdom. If she would even know how to respond. The papers weren't even specific on whether or not she knew who she was, or whether she was completely without clue as to her origins. They mostly comprised of dull medical research into trying to find the source of her illness, but eventually put it down to her muscles developing too slowly to keep up with the growth of her body, something they could do nothing about.

Arcadia became more interested when she read a theory it was a curse. But to be a curse, somebody would have to have inflicted the Queen before she gave birth, and it was impossible for anybody to get near her, she was always surrounded by either the Royal Guard or the Temple Knights.

The Temple Knights? Arcadia pondered this carefully. It couldn't be possible that the Cardinal had planned this, could it? Infected the poor girl before she was born so that the King could have no heir. She shook her head. The Cardinal couldn't have planned that much. He couldn't have planned to take control of San d'Oria before he knew about the war and the loss of the King, it didn't make sense. She peered out the window at the setting sun, and began to wish Olose was with her. She wanted to rest, but couldn't. She had heard too many stories of carriages being attacked by monsters to allow herself to slip into a sleep.

She awoke to a voice.

"We've arrived." It was dry and emotionless, the voice of her driver, somebody who seemed to fully believe his life was utterly devoid of purpose apart from the soul aspect of taking her to and fro strange places. She found him strangely creepy, before realising her neck was stiff and that she had fallen asleep despite her previous vow.

"Oh, okay." She muttered, rubbing her eyes sleepily. She got up slowly and exited the carriage, swaying slightly. She saw a normal looking house before her, just an ordinary country cottage. "Thank you." She curtseyed formally, not that the driver ever noticed, and walked with caution up to the house. She swung open the door and walked in.

She was instantly taken aback. The whole area surrounding the door was utterly baron, devoid of anything, even carpet, but the rest of the cottage appeared to be fantastically decorated, and surprisingly full of chairs and sofas and even beds. Hand rails ran everywhere like walkways (except to the door). She observed that the chairs weren't normal, but carefully made to a position to force the user to sit up, even if they relaxed. She guessed it was because Astra was unable to support herself, and so the chairs did it for her. She was slightly surprised the condition was that bad. The handrails must be to help her get around, and by having none by the door it was impossible for her to leave. That kept her perfectly safe. Expensive paintings hung on the walls, and books were scattered all around (complete with specialised stands to hold them in front of her so she didn't have to try and hold them up herself), all in what must have been a vain attempt to keep her entertained.

"Hello? Miss Julie?" Came a very soft voice from somewhere amongst the cluttered room.

"Urm. No." Arcadia answered, assuming Julie was the woman who cared for Astra. "My name is Arcadia. I need to speak with you."

"Speak with me?" Her voice seemed confused. Arcadia walked around to see her, sat in one of the specialised chairs, forcibly upright. "You're new. I haven't seen you before." She remarked, astonished. Arcadia was more shocked at Astra's appearance. Her skin was lethally pale, white, yet her eyes sparkled bright blue. Her hair was long and golden and her long ears seemed to twitch with curiosity. No other muscle in her body was working. She looked more alive in her eyes than anybody Arcadia had ever seen, but her body looked dead. She looked like a corpse slumped after it had been poisoned. "Nobody new comes here. Please. Tell me."

"Tell you what?" Arcadia asked, puzzled.

"Everything." She answered. "What is the outside like?"

"There is lots outside. I cannot tell you about it all." Arcadia felt a bit guilty as she saw Astra's face drop in disappointment. "Well, it iss very green." She began, to try and make up for it. "Well, except for certain places. But around here, it iss very green. Full of flowers and trees and it looks beautiful. Like that painting." She pointed to a painting hanging on the wall. Astra smiled.

"Miss Julie always tells me about the place that is a painting of." She laughed. "Ronfaure Forest she says. I really want to see it, but she says I wouldn't survive the journey." She looked quite sad.

"You might be able to see it." Arcadia tried to encourage her.  
"No. I cannot leave here. Even if I wanted to, I can't make it to the door." Arcadia looked, it was only a few feet. She felt a desperate urge to help the girl in front of her, but there was nothing she could do.

"Do you know who you are?" Arcadia asked, knowing time was short.

"I'm a girl who cannot move or go anywhere. So why is it important?" Astra tried to shrug, her face becoming twisted as she put as much effort as she could into moving her shoulders. It was an unusual motion, and one she didn't make regularly, and she failed, giving up with a sigh. Arcadia looked slightly confused at this before carrying on.

"You are a Princess. Of San d'Oria." She explained.

"Oh. That. I know." Astra answered. "What am I meant to do? I was taken here because I cannot rule. My father used to visit, but he's stopped." She looked sad, but didn't cry. Arcadia guessed it was just too much effort to cry for somebody like her.  
"There was a war." Arcadia explained.

"A war?" Astra repeated. "War. War." She rolled the word around, practicing saying it. "What is a war? Does it delay my father from visiting?" Arcadia tried to hide her astonishment, but failed.

"Yes. I'm afraid it does." She explained. "A war is when two groups of people fight."

"Fight." She pondered curiously. "Yes. I know this word. People do it in those violent books. Miss Julie doesn't like me reading them, so usually takes them away. Isn't this when people try to hurt each other?"

"Yes, I am afraid it is." Arcadia sighed.

"Why would two groups of people want to hurt each other?" Astra asked, clearly baffled.

"I honestly do not know." Arcadia replied. "Your father has gone missing." She said, far more bluntly than she would have liked, and wished she could turn back time and say it more tactfully.

"Do you think the group of people he war with hurt him?" Astra asked. Arcadia smiled sweetly at Astra's failed attempt at using her new word.

"He was _at _war with." A voice corrected. Arcadia spun around to see a simple clothed woman walk in, carrying a bowl of soup. "Honestly, why did you go and teach her a word like that for." Arcadia assumed this was Miss Julie.

"I needed to tell her of what happened to her father." Arcadia explained.

"You can't just come in here and tell her about the outside!" Julie cried. "Who do you think you are?" She paused. "Wait. Who are you?"

"My name is Lady Arcadia De Lily." Arcadia curtseyed as she always did. "Princess Astra here could be the last hope for San d'Oria."

"Well, she's not going anywhere, I hope." Julie said curtly. "She can be the last hope for San d'Oria right here."

"Please, Miss Julie, I was enjoying speaking to Miss Arcadia here." Astra said in a whine.

"Well, if you enjoyed it, then carry on." Julie bowed. "But don't go telling her any more about nasty things like war." Julie warned, placing the soup on a raised table in front of Astra. "Call me when you want to eat it, and I'll help you."

"I thought I would try on my own today." Astra said confidently.

"I don't think that's a good idea." Julie replied.

"Miss Arcadia can help me!" She suggested, as enthusiastically as she could manage.

"It is just Arcadia." Arcadia laughed slightly.

"Okay, if that's what you want." Julie turned and left without asking Arcadia's opinion. Arcadia sighed. Astra began to reach for the spoon, straining and reaching forwards with all her might. Her tiny white hand wrapped around it, lifting it out of the soup. The spoon shook without balance. Arcadia swept down and placed her hand around Astra's own, steadying the spoon and feeding it to Astra's mouth. She found herself questioning just how Astra was going to be able to do anything. Astra looked up at Arcadia's eyes in confusion.

"Why are your fingernails all red?" She asked, looking at Arcadia's hand wrapped around her own.

"They're painted." Arcadia answered with a warm smile, finding talking to Astra like talking to a confused child. She realised just how cut off she was from the outside world.

"Painted? You use paint on walls." She repeated, just to make sure she was thinking of the right thing. "Why would you use it on your fingernails?" Arcadia paused.

"Urm, I am not sure." She replied, looking at her own fingernails and feeling oddly embarrassed.

"Then why did you do it? Is it the same reason you have red lips?" That question had been burning on Astra's mind for some time. "Do you put paint on your face too, and not know why?" Arcadia blushed slightly.

"Sort of. It is supposed to make me look pretty." She replied, explaining as she would to a child.

"But Miss Julie always says I'm pretty, and I don't have any paint." Astra said, her eyes sparkling as she attempted to understand. "I'm sorry." She suddenly spurted out.

"What for?" Arcadia asked in confusion.

"I must seem like a confused child." She answered bluntly. "I am just curious. I never see the outside world or meet new people." She began to twist and shuffle in the chair, her arms on the arm rests started shaking furiously and she rose to her feet, before stumbling. Arcadia dove in and caught her, holding her up. She was quite light, but still Arcadia found she could barely hold her up. Astra clung to one of the support rails. "I'm alright." She said. "You don't have to help me. I use these rails." She began to slide along the rails curiously, pulling herself along. Her arms couldn't manage the feat however and she fell. Arcadia caught her again and strained to lift her up, placing her back in the seat. "Sorry. Miss Julie usually helps me when I fall over. It's so difficult to get back up once I've fallen to the ground."

"It's better this way, now you can eat your soup." Arcadia smiled.

"I always eat soup. Miss Julie says it's all I can digest." Astra said sadly. "I get bored of it. Please, tell me more about my father and why I can help San d'Oria. It all sounds very exciting. Exciting things never happen to me."

"Very well." Arcadia nodded. She sat down in a nearby chair, finding it incredibly uncomfortable in its unique shape. "Where shall I begin?" She pondered aloud.

She had a feeling that dealing with Princess Astra was going to be very difficult.


	36. Robbery

**Author's Note: I just wanted to apologise again to Dark Axem for being so defensive about what he was saying as a joke. I must admit, I got too worried in the thought that it was coming off poorly to take it in the right manner. Smithz commented saying everybody should lighten up, even if they were joking, but I realised that this isn't the case, because I appreciate criticism, and it was entirely my fault for overreacting. If these author's notes teach you anything, it's that I'm extremely insecure about my own writing, so tend to overreact a lot and think everything I do is crap. That and I'm not even sure why I picked this one to be so defensive on, I mean, I literally rip off _so _much in all the stories I do (as seen in the FFXI Chronicles where themes from other games always crop up). I mean, there's even a scene from Star Wars in the FFXI Chronicles 2, and a speech from The Exorcist! So I'm not even sure why I was so defensive that time, but I do apologise to Dark Axem (and everybody else) because I really did overreact, and it's entirely my fault we had any kind of argument (although I don't really see it as an argument, just couldn't think of a better word). TheFrogKiller said 'you didn't attack your reviewers, you teared them a new ahole', which made me feel really guilty. The least I wanted to do was be cruel or mean to anybody, I hate being like that, so I'm really sorry. If I get around to it, I may go back and just get rid of that big defensive author's note because it serves no purpose really. So I'm really sorry everyone!**

**Thanks for the compliment by the way, Smithz! Glad you found time to read my story, I've enjoyed yours. Although I have to point out that you credit it's length, remember, it's quality, not quantity. I can do the quantity part well, still working on the quality part. Okay, I'll stop. I get yelled at when I bash my own writing (one day somebody's gonna get fed up, come along and go 'yeah, you're right, your writing does suck!' and then I'll pay for it). There's one more thing I'm not sure about in the coming chapters, but I'll wait until you've read the chapter so I can say that because it'll make a little more sense, or at least be easier to judge.**

**CHAPTER 36**

**ROBBERY**

Olose and Dartian were sat back in the same dark corner of the tavern, looking over the multiple papers they had.

"Look at this." Dartian pointed out. "A shipment comes in from Windurst of donations to the church to the Cardinal today. Apparently it's not to be opened nor seen by anybody but the Cardinal himself."

"Odd." Olose agreed, looking over the same paper, a list of the trade between San d'Oria and other nations, which had considerably dropped due to the war. "Perhaps we should check it out."

"Urm, how?" Dartian asked.

"Simple." Olose answered. "According to this, the shipment comes in via carriage to the south gate. That means we just wait outside and take it."

"Take it?" Dartian repeated.

"Yeah." Olose nodded.

"As in stealing?" Dartian seemed a little shocked.  
"Yeah." Olose answered bluntly. "Look at it this way, that shipment is for the Cardinal. That means it must be full of money. We can distribute the money amongst the masses too, I mean, with food at an all time low I'm sure they'll appreciate it."

"So we're robbing from the rich and giving to the poor? Original." Dartian grumbled sarcastically.

"We're robbing from the Cardinal to annoy him. Giving to the poor is just a side effect." Olose shrugged. "I'd keep the money, but Arcadia would complain. Plus she pays for everything anyway."

"Yeah, must be nice knowing somebody that rich." Dartian laughed. "Which reminds me, I doubt I'm getting paid anymore." Olose laughed.

"Okay, so _you _can keep some of the money." He grinned.

Astra was unusually silent, considering what Arcadia had just told her. Arcadia had been as tactful as possible, explaining that her father may be dead, and that the Cardinal was attempting to take her kingdom from her. She hadn't said anything for some time before she finally spoke up.

"If my father is dead, then I can't see him anymore, can I?" She said sadly, as if she wasn't sure for herself. It took all of Arcadia's self control to stop herself from delivering a sigh of exasperation.

"No. No you cannot." She said bluntly.

"That's a shame. I liked his visits." Astra muttered dreamingly. "What happens to San d'Oria now?" She finally managed to ask, as if struggling to find the necessary oxygen to speak.

"If the Cardinal takes control, who knows?" Arcadia shrugged, and Astra regarded her free movement jealously. "That is why we have to stop him!"

"We?" Astra asked in confusion.

"Yes. You have to come with me." Arcadia explained. "Only you can stop him from taking over."

"How?" Astra questioned blankly.

"You are royalty, he is not. As long as you live, by San d'Orian law he cannot take over." Arcadia told her. Astra paused.

"I will die." She stated. "I will not survive the journey."

"It's all by carriage, you just need to sit down." Arcadia told her. "And I'll be there to make sure you're safe."

"But if I go outside-" She began, and her face suddenly lit up. It didn't last long, taking far too much of her extremely limited energy, but she smiled brightly. "I can see the outside! I can see it!" She said, trying to shout, but failing. She was clearly very enthusiastic.

"She's not going anywhere!" Snapped Julie from the door, walking in. "Now kindly leave ma'am, and take your lies with you."

"I am not lying!" Arcadia protested. "The fate of an entire nation rests on Astra."

"She is too sick to move." Julie replied. "She stays here."

"But people will die!" Arcadia cried.

"And one of them may be Astra!" Julie shot.

"Can I not-" Astra began to say, sounding soft and weak, "-have a say in this?" The two fell silent and turned to her. "If people shall die, but I can save them, then I must." She said simply. "I shall travel with Arcadia. I shall save my nation. Maybe I shall die. I feel it's about time. If my father has died, then perhaps I should."

"No. You will not die! I shall make sure of it!" Arcadia told Astra in her strongest tone of voice. "Believe me, I know somebody who will keep you safe no matter what." Julie was pacing sadly.

"If she has to leave, then take her." She whimpered, obviously feeling sorry to see Astra leave. "I was honoured to be able to help you over the years, Princess Astra."

"Thank you Miss Julie. For everything." Astra said softly.

"Would you at least finish your soup before leaving?" Julie asked, managing a smile.

"I don't feel hungry." Astra smiled weakly. "I am a little too distracted."

"What about you, Lady Arcadia?" Julie asked, smiling. "You must be hungry from your journey." Arcadia's stomach rumbled on cue, and she put a hand on it, letting out an embarrassed laugh.

"I am actually. I would appreciate it." She admitted.

"Then please, feel free to eat it." Julie told her.

"I shall. Thank you." Arcadia smiled softly. "And then we must leave." Astra managed a soft smile as she looked longingly out the window.

The path leading to San d'Oria had been nice and peaceful. Sergeant T'Bek of the Temple Knights had been enjoying the quiet, glad that not even a beastman had shown up. He had been especially selected to pick up the Cardinal's latest shipment of goods, treasures from Windurst, and to deliver them, it had been easy, and he was going to get paid handsomely for it. He grinned. It was days like these he loved being a Temple Knight.

"Ah ha!" Olose cried as he jumped down in front of the chocobos. The lazy looking Temple Knight leapt out of his skin. Olose moved in between the chocobos and cut the straps, allowing them to run free. The carriage approached him and he jumped onto it. The Temple Knight went to draw his sword but a blade settled on his neck. He looked up to see Dartian stood on the roof, pointing his blade down at him.

"Hello." Grinned the Royal Guard. The Temple Knight sighed heavily.

"I'm afraid we've been forced to liberate you of that load your carrying." Olose explained. "It's needed elsewhere you see."

"W-what?" T'Bek stuttered. "Who are you?"

"Name's Olose Sampson." Olose grinned.

"What did you tell him that for?" Dartian snapped.

"Builds us up a reputation." Olose shrugged apathetically.

"W-what are you going to do to me?" T'Bek stuttered.

"Nothing." Olose answered simply. "Unless you try to stop us of course." Olose whistled and two chocobos emerged from the bushes. He quickly attached them to the carriage. "We'll be seeing you around." He grinned and waved before pushing the Temple Knight off of the carriage and riding it off into the distance.

T'Bek got up and dusted himself off. He had a feeling the Cardinal wasn't going to be pleased.

The carriage finally departed from Astra's small country house. It had taken some time, but Arcadia, Julie and her driver had managed to place one of the wooden chairs designed for Astra inside the carriage so that she could be sat upright without using too much effort. It was conveniently a wheelchair, making getting her around far easier as she could barely move herself. Once the wheels were locked in place it formed a perfectly ordinary seat, and the carriage departed. Astra struggled to twist her neck, so that she could look out of the window.

"It feels strange." She giggled as the carriage bumped along.

"It always feels like this." Arcadia told her.

"It does?" Astra asked. Arcadia nodded (not that Astra could see, she was facing the wrong way). "There are little black things blowing around!" She suddenly exclaimed. Arcadia looked curiously before laughing.

"Those are just bugs." She explained.

"Bugs? As in insects? I've read about them." She said in a sense of wonder, her eyes seeming brighter than usual. "Hey. There's some big furry grass over there."

"That's a bush." Arcadia said, giggling. She quickly caught herself and adopted a serious expression.

"I've only seen flowers. Miss Julie brings them in all the time." Astra told Arcadia, recognising the word 'bush' from the books she had read. "People! There are people outside!" Astra cried excitingly.

"There are lots of travellers on the road." Arcadia said gently with a caring smile, trying to help Astra understand as much as possible. Astra giggled.

"They're all wearing red tunics." She said. "They all look the same."

"What?" Arcadia bolted to the window.

Temple Knights blocked the road, and the driver brought the carriage to a stop. One ran up to the door and flung it open.

"Out. Now! Both of you!" He ordered. Arcadia paused, getting up and leaving. "And you!" He snapped to Astra.

"She can't. Leave her alone!" Arcadia cried. The Temple Knight lashed out, hitting Arcadia to the floor.

"Don't you speak back to me!" He snarled. "Get up!" Astra's arms began to shake furiously as she tried to lift herself out of her seat. She managed to get to her feet but stumbled and fell out of the carriage. Arcadia dived and managed to catch her, supporting her from falling too far. Astra panted for air, exhausted from the energy she had to put out just to stand.

"You're going to kill her!" Arcadia spat.

"We're just doing our duty." The Temple Knight answered.

"You're duty?" Arcadia snapped.

"We serve the Cardinal, current ruler of the San d'Oria." The Temple Knight explained. "My loyalty is to my kingdom. He's told me all about you fugitives. You're under arrest for crimes against the kingdom and will be executed."

"Driver!" Arcadia cried. "Do something!"

"Sorry ma'am." The driver said plainly. "I have served you for many years, loyally. You never even learnt my name." Arcadia felt a wash of guilt. "The payment for keeping the Cardinal informed of Olose's actions was high. I told him everything." Arcadia was without thought. She couldn't ponder the betrayal.

"Driver! I thought you were my friend!" Arcadia cried.

"I worked for you because you paid me. The Cardinal paid me more." He said dryly. "I care for you as much as you care for me." He smiled sinisterly. Arcadia turned to the Temple Knights.

"You serve San d'Oria!" She cried. "This is Princess Astra, daughter of King Richard, the King of San d'Oria. That makes her your ruler! If you defy her, you are all guilty of treason!" Astra looked up at Arcadia, still slumped in her arms.

"Is the outside world always this exciting?" She asked softly.

"More than you know." Arcadia groaned. "So what do you say? Are you treasonous or loyal?" She cried to the Temple Knights. They glanced to each other, gauging each other's reactions. They suddenly came to a decision.

Olose hauled in the final crate to the small room he had rented out at the tavern.

"We're rich." Dartian said matter-of-factly, piling through the gold coins he had found. Olose smirked. "Well, there's quite a bit of money here at least." He added, it wasn't quite enough to make them rich, but plenty to distribute to help members of the community that were starving.

"What else? Why did it only go directly to the Cardinal?" Olose asked.

"Well, as far as I can tell, something is hidden in with the donations." Dartian explained. He lifted up a bottle. "Bottles of the stuff. This vile white liquid." He swirled it around inside. Olose's keen senses picked it apart by smell.

"Poison." He stated. "What's the Cardinal planning to do with poison?"

"How the hell should I know?" Dartian asked. "But you do know what this is. This is proof that his plans are sinister. He _can't _take over if the population is against him."

"Right. We'll head to the main square and spread the news, as well as distribute the gold. If that doesn't turn the crowd against him, I don't know what will."

The Cardinal had been having a pleasant day until d'Mil rushed in with a panicked look on her face. He looked up from his current feast of food to find out what bothered her. Ever since he had halved the amount of food available to the population he had been enjoying peace and serenity. The masses were too broken to do anything, and when anybody asked him why he had done it, he explained that he feared a civil war and so had to keep them weak and too concerned with hunger to take part in one.

"What is it, Captain?" He asked casually. D'Mil was panting.  
"Sir! There's a riot in the streets!" She cried.

"What?" He burst to his feet.

"Somebody has been uniting the crowd! Distributing money! They say he intercepted a shipment intended for you! That they found poison in it, poison sent to you for some unknown purpose." D'Mil stopped to catch her breath. The Cardinal began to pace rapidly.

"Deploy the Temple Knights!" He ordered. "Bring them under control! Use lethal force if you have too."

"Your eminence?" D'Mil questioned in shock.

"It is necessary! We _must _keep San d'Oria under control. A slip now will mean we lose it forever. The aftermath of war is just too threatening." The Cardinal snapped.

"Your eminence, if I may, what is the purpose of the poison? Is what he claims true?" She asked nervously.

"Not in the slightest." The Cardinal answered kindly. "You know I would do nothing like that." D'Mil looked to the floor, feeling slightly guilty. "Wait. He?"

"Yes, Olose Sampson, the same rebel that freed Lord Tarrak. He's the one rallying the crowd." She explained. The Cardinal's face twitched with anger.

"Kill Sampson, and anybody who tries to protect him or associate with him." The Cardinal decided. "I have a package coming soon that should make him easier to control."

"Your emimence?" D'Mil gasped. "The rumours _are _true! You _did _send out my troops to apprehend Princess Astra!" The Cardinal paused. D'Mil looked to the floor, she had been on duty that night too. She had seen the Princess be born, and knew of her problems. She also knew that Astra still lived, despite what the kingdom had claimed. The Cardinal took a calm breath, becoming fed up with dealing with d'Mil's doubts.

"Princess Astra is still extremely ill." He stated. "She is in no condition to rule. If she were to take over, the land would be caught in anarchy. For that reason, I have apprehended her, and Sampson's friend who was assisting. One of her servants came to me and offered assistance. With those two as prisoners, Sampson will be much easier to deal with. We shall then return Astra to the country, and she can continue to live her life." He sighed. "I understand you have your doubts, Santia, it makes sense in these trying times. But please. Trust me. I've always been kind and truthful to you. I am doing all of this for the good of San d'Oria, even if sometimes it seems underhanded."

"I understand. I apologise." D'Mil found herself apologising again, her constant doubts stacking up. "I shall do my best to stop the riots and kill Olose Sampson." She bowed and exited, thinking nervously to herself about her previous encounters with Olose. Something wasn't right about him. She was actually scared of him. She wasn't scared of anybody, but something in Olose's eyes suggested he was more than just an ordinary man, and it made her shiver.

**Author's Note: Right. The one thing I'm a bit worried about is both d'Mil and the Cardinal. Mainly d'Mil because I'm worried she's coming off as too 'good' of a character, and I wanted to keep it greyer, so you struggled to figure out whether you should hate her as a villain or just feel sorry for her, that she's caught up on the wrong side of everything. I think it's leaning too far one way, and wanted to know if anybody else thought the same, or whether I should just keep doing in the way I was doing it.**

**And the Cardinal I wanted to ask about because I've been trying to make him a bit of a different villain. Originally he was going to be a twisted evil guy who worshipped Promethia as a very traditional 'haha, I am evil!' villain. But as I wrote it, I kind of like the idea that he truly believes everything he's doing is the best thing for San d'Oria, making him a bit more of an odd villain, who's just trying to do what he deems right, no matter how bad it seems to others. I was wondering which way people thought that should go, whether he should turn out to be a villain planning to conquer the world or something once he has San d'Oria, or whether he's just a bit insane, acting far too drastically for what he deems to be right. I kind of prefer the second one because then he's less of a hateable villain, and more of an interesting one. I've already had Abaj as a really sadistic villain (in one of my ideas the Cardinal was Abaj regenerated) so I'm leaning more towards the second one, but I was wondering if anybody had any opinions, since I really love receiving input (it helps me a lot, I'm not very good at making decisions). **

**Anyway, that's all for now. I have to stop making these author's notes. I'm sure they make up half the word count!**


	37. Riot

**Author's Note: Well, glad to see we're all sorted. Sorry for sounding angry Dark Axem! Funny what multiple misunderstandings can do. Out of a point, I've only seen the Exorcist once (it wasn't scary at first, but when I read a real life story of exorcism, it became pretty frightening, don't think I'll be watching that again!), and if you're curious about which bit was taken from it, it was Vivli's exorcism speech in the FFXI Chronicles 2, I adopted it to suit FFXI lore and religion, but since I didn't know how to perform an exorcism myself (unsurprisingly!) I took some lines from the script to the Exorcist, and from the trailer for the new Exorcist film which I downloaded to try and find some appropriate lines, believe it or not. It's actually one of my more logical rip offs, unlike the heaps of Firefly rip offs in this one. I finally got Bootus reading it (although he still hasn't read the Chronicles story), and he's been calling it 'Medieval Firefly', it's that bad. Lucky nobody saw that show.**

**Wait. I was supposed to drop the rip off thing. Anyway, a few more points I wanted to make. About the Cardinal. I'm still at a crossroads about that. He _is _evil, obviously, which becomes more and more apparent hopefully as this goes on, but I kind of liked the idea he honestly believes him ruling San d'Oria is the best for everybody, making him a bit more twisted than just plain evil. Plus it makes a change. But I do like how he comes across in this, as a manipulator and a slimy guy who is obviously lying. But I could easily make him turn out to be somebody who wants power, so wants to rule San d'Oria, but I think I've done too many 'I want to rule 'coz I'm evil' villains. On the bright side, I do introduce a 'new' evil villain in this, who is just plain evil.**

**And TheFrogKiller, I knew you were being sarcastic when you said about that, because I know you're not the type of person to say that in a nasty way, but it made me realise I had been a bit mean, hence the guilty feeling. No fault on your part!**

**Oh, and I found out where I got the name Princess Astra from. It bugged me so much I typed it in in Google to find out. Surprise, surprise, and I should have known this I guess, she's a character from Doctor Who. I've seen hardly any of the old episodes, but they must have referenced her somewhere or heard the name, because that seems to be where she's from.**

**Useless trivia over, I'll shut up so people can read. I'm far too chatty for my own good.**

**CHAPTER 37**

**RIOT**

A young man marched out of the crowd Olose had taken control of so well.

"Okay, if you're so smart, what's the Cardinal planning to do with poison? Huh?" He didn't seem too believing, and a bit worried about Olose's suggestions.

"How should I know?" Olose shrugged. "I can't pretend to know the answers. I can just tell you the facts. The facts are simple. Supplies during the final leg of the war were cut off, especially to the areas King Richard was fighting in. No food and no reinforcements were sent. The authority to alter the war plans rested on the Cardinal alone. Now he's cut off the food supply to the city, claiming that food must be rationed in the aftermath of war, and I've intercepted a package full of poison. Make the judgement for yourselves!"

"What he says is true!" Dartian cried, stood in full Royal Guard uniform. Everybody fell silent. "We have to strike back against the Cardinal. Tell him that we are not going to take this. We have to stop him and reinstate the King."

"But if he is dead, then there is nobody left in the royal line!" The same argumentative figure from before cried.

"There's an alternative, but in the meantime, we have to stop the Cardinal from taking over!" Olose explained.

"Do not listen to this rebel." Came a calm voice. "Stand with him and you stand against us." Captain d'Mil and a whole squadron of Temple Knights filed into the busy courtyard where Olose spoke. "Olose Sampson, you're under arrest. You too, Lieutenant Dartian. Your charged with treason and sentenced to death." D'Mil explained calmly.

"You're a good person, Santia." Dartian said calmly. "Even if you are my rival. The Cardinal is evil. You must see that."

"He's doing what's best for San d'Oria!" D'Mil protested. "We need order, his methods are unorthodox, but the best in the long run."

"Unorthodox?" Olose exclaimed. "He's trying to poison the population!"

"I have his word that you are lying. The Cardinal would never do that." D'Mil seemed slightly shaken. Olose held up a bottle full of a milky liquid.

"Then explain this!" Olose yelled. D'Mil paused. She looked at it, recognising the poison painfully.

"That's not possible." She said in a barely audible whisper.

"We don't need to take this! Get 'em!" Cried one of the crowd, and the group began to advance on the Temple Knights. They drew their swords.

"No!" D'Mil screamed over the crowd, but it was futile, nobody heard her. "No! Don't hurt them!" It was too late, and battle erupted in the streets as the Temple Knights were literally bundled by the attacking rioters. They stabbed many, killing them, but couldn't hold them back. D'Mil herself was forced to the floor. "No!" She yelled uselessly pinned down. She tried to slash with her sword, but her arm was crushed and the blade taken from her. She tried to escape, but she stood no chance. She felt a blade penetrate her leg and screamed in agony.

"STOP!" Olose cried, but nobody listened. "STOP! You don't have to kill them! They're not your enemy! The Cardinal is!" The rioters fought without stopping. They had no consideration for life. Rage and mob mentality had taken over them. It was only a horrific howl tearing through the air and a gigantic monster bounding into the middle of them that stopped them.

A werewolf tore through the centre of the crowd, snarling. The crowd scattered and ran in total fear. Most of the Temple Knights retreated too, except those who were dead or unable to move. As the crowd filtered away the corpses of knights and rioters were left behind, seemingly filling the small gap the Temple Knights had occupied.

"My goddess." Dartian whispered.

"What have I done?" Olose said in shock, still in his werewolf form.

D'Mil looked up with blurry eyes at the werewolf looming over her, reached for a blade, but her blood loss had sapped her strength. She faded out before she could attack, giving herself to the monster.

Arcadia ran to the back of the prison carriage, pounding the door.

"You are making a mistake!" She snapped. The Temple Knights ignored her. Astra was laying on her back, staring at the ceiling, the only position she could comfortably sprawl in without tiring herself out from muscle use. "Fools!" She screamed after them, but they ignored her. She slumped down on the small bench hanging as the prison wagon was pulled away.  
"Where are we going?" Astra asked innocently. "Does this always happen?"

"I think we're going to prison." Arcadia sighed. "And no."

"What's a prison?" Astra blankly questioned. Arcadia smiled slightly with an annoyed laugh.

"Prison. It's a place you are not allowed leave. You are taken there when whoever is in charge thinks you have done something wrong." Arcadia explained in the best way she could do.  
"What did I do wrong?" Astra asked with a wide eyed stare at Arcadia. Arcadia was worried she was about to cry.

"They think you are a threat to their ruler because you are a princess." Arcadia explained.  
"No. I meant, before." Astra said.

"What?" Arcadia asked, puzzled.

"Before. I wasn't allowed to leave. I was at prison." Astra misused another word, but Arcadia chose not to correct her. She was feeling too sorry for Astra to care about her grammar. "Why was I at prison? I hadn't done anything wrong, but I wasn't allowed to leave."

"That was different." Arcadia sighed.

"Why?" Astra asked. She was just confused, but Arcadia had already noticed her habit of constantly asking questions until she fully understood. Arcadia paused, her head pounding. She wasn't feeling too good, and certainly didn't need capture.

"You were ill. People were trying to protect you." Arcadia explained with a sigh, raising her hand to her head to feel her temperature. She felt hot. Something was wrong.

"Where are we going?" Astra asked. Arcadia struggled to get up to look, but her arms just shook as they tried to lift her body weight. She swayed, feeling weaker. Her muscles became heavy, and she could barely move them. If she was alert enough, she'd of noticed that her skin had become paler. Astra watched, fascinated. Arcadia swayed and collapsed. "Arcadia!" She suddenly cried. She tried her best to get up and help her, but her arms just shook and her muscles shut down. She couldn't keep it up. She laid back, panting, unable to move. "Arcadia!" She cried again. Arcadia sighed.

"What is happening to me?" She questioned. Her eyes suddenly went wide. "The soup! It must have been…" She trailed off, passing out. Astra blinked, looking at the ceiling.

"But Miss Julie makes the soup." She said innocently.

Julie approached the Cardinal with a smile.

"That was quick." The Cardinal told her.

"I can travel quickly. The right teleport spell and a quick chocobo can get you anywhere fast." She grinned. "Astra left the house."

"I know. My troops should have picked her up by now." The Cardinal shot back.  
"I managed to make sure her new friend will not be doing anything soon." Julie laughed. "A nice test to see how effective that poison is. Have you deployed it yet?" The Cardinal paused.

"There was interference." He stated. "An unruly rebel named Olose Sampson." Julie smirked. "Riots are the result. Many of my Temple Knights have been badly injured and the captain is still missing."

"Without that poison, your plan cannot go ahead." Julie pointed out. "Shame. It was ingenious."

"It will have to be delayed. I can only hope that the citizens have the sense to allow me to take control anyway. If I do not take the throne, the anarchy that has already gripped the city will spread. That Sampson figure must be eliminated too before he gets the population to do something far more rash." The Cardinal stated.

"Of course." Julie smiled. "How is Astra? Tell me when she arrives. I would like to make sure she dies a comfortable death."

"We are just matching history." The Cardinal said bluntly. "She is dead in the eyes of everybody but you, me, and that hume woman. Sampson appears to know something, but he will not be an issue for very long."

"I could have killed her quietly in her home." Julie stated.

"No. I didn't want to have to kill until it was entirely necessary." The Cardinal explained. "But, she threatens my rule, and cannot rule herself. She must be destroyed."

"Of course, your eminence." Julie smiled. "You do realise that this plan has many flaws. I could simply, reclaim the poison." Lightning crackled from Julie's eyes.

"Would you be so kind, my dear?" The Cardinal asked sarcastically.

"It shall be done, your eminence." Julie bowed.

_Oh no, I'm still alive. I don't deserve to be. I thought that might finally be the end. Perhaps karma for what I had done. But no, I live. I still live. I always have done. Wait. Why am I alive? That beast was going to kill me! It was right over me. What happened? We were attacked. So many pointless deaths. And that poison. It couldn't be? I thought it was over. I thought I'd never have to see that again._

Santia d'Mil sat up, trying to silence her thoughts. Olose stood beside her.

"You're awake." He said with a smirk. She went for her sword, but it was gone. "I don't want to hurt you. Hell, I saved you."

"Saved me?" She questioned, with a confused look in her face, settling back down.

_Hey, maybe if I relax he'll kill me. I deserve it._

"Yeah. Olose Sampson. Professional werewolf. Had to chase the protestors away, then brought you here. The other Temple Knights I made sure made a hospital." He explained kindly.

"Why did you bring me here, then?" Santia asked suspiciously. Olose smiled slightly, a knowing smile, not a happy one.

"I saw recognition when you saw the poison." Santia's heart sank.

_It was so long ago. I was loyal to the Cardinal. He had treated me like his daughter. Why wouldn't I trust him? I had no reason to think anything ill of him. No. I can't think like that. I'm just making excuses._

"Then fear." Olose stated. "Shame. I can smell emotions. Even through that crowd, you stank of guilt and shame. Then when the fight started you tried to stop it. You didn't want bloodshed. You may be loyal, but you're not evil. You're hiding something. What do you know about the poison?"

_No. I can't tell that story! I just can't! It wasn't my fault! I didn't know! I was confused! What was I supposed to do? How was I supposed to know? I didn't realise! I didn't believe! It wasn't my fault! It wasn't! It wasn't! It wasn't!_

Santia suddenly burst into tears. Olose stepped back.  
"It wasn't my fault!" She wept.

"I wasn't expecting that." Olose admitted.

"I didn't know any better!" She sobbed.

"What? What didn't you know?" Olose asked, sitting down beside her. She sniffed, her emotions had finally peaked.

_If I had died, I would be free. But no! I live! I can't take it anymore! I have to tell someone! Anyone! Maybe he'll do the right thing! Maybe he can put it right! No. That's impossible. But it's a start._

"I-" She began, choking on her tears. She took a few calmly breaths, her experience in repressing emotions as captain of the guard came flooding back, and she sat up, cleaning away her tears. Her leg throbbed in pain, but she didn't care. It had been carefully bandaged, but she didn't even notice. "Eighteen years ago. The night Princess Astra was born." She began. Olose suddenly perked up with interest.

"What? What happened that night?" Dartian asked. Santia cursed. She hadn't even noticed him there.

"You must be really enjoying this." She spat. Dartian sat back.

"Not really, no." He stated. "My father was on duty that night too. What did you see that makes you special?" Santia paused for a whimper. Her face was burning with guilt, and Olose could smell it pouring from her.

"Urm." She stumbled over her words. "Before hand. I was there when the Queen went into labour." She turned to Olose. "It wasn't natural. The Cardinal had called in a powerful black mage, ordered me to let her through the gates. I did. The black mage cast a spell on the Queen, causing her to drop into labour and give birth to the baby early."

"So that's why the Queen fell unconscious before she gave birth." Dartian gasped. Santia nodded.

"And then-" She choked again. "And then, she handed a bottle of that white liquid to the Cardinal. I asked him what it was, but he said that it wasn't important."

"White liquid?" Dartian whispered.

"Shush." Olose told him. "Then what?"

"After Captain Tarrak went off duty-" She paused again, finding it difficult to speak. "The Cardinal saw to make sure that I was left in charge of guarding the new born Princess Astra. I was honoured, and did my best. Later that evening he came to my side. He told me he had to see Astra. That something was wrong, he had heard that her premature birth was going to kill her. I asked him why he had made it happen then, and he said that he had seen a prophesy from his trusted seer that the Queen would die in childbirth otherwise. He gave me a needle, filled with that white liquid. He told me it was a cure. I went in and I injected it."

_She screamed and whined. She kicked and sobbed. I held the baby down and I thrust the needle into its arm and watched that liquid pour into her bloodstream. I felt sick. I felt ill. I knew something was wrong. The liquid smelt wrong. The baby looked healthy. She was small, light, but healthy. Her skin was a healthy elvaan tan. Moments after I injected it, she turned white. Pale. She became sick. She fell limp. I thought I had killed her. I screamed in terror, and the Cardinal ran in._

"The Cardinal came in after I had injected it into Astra. I was horrified! The baby looked like it was dead!" She sobbed for a moment. "I thought that I had killed her."

"Then what did you do?" Dartian asked angrily, showing none of the sympathy Olose clearly felt.

"I-" She paused. "The Cardinal told me that he'd be honest. He told me that his seer had actually predicted that Astra would bring ruin upon San d'Oria. That this was the only humane solution."

_He said that it was humane. That she would live, but be too weak to rule. Best for everybody. No worries. It had to be done. Of course I believed him. He said he was being honest. Why would I disbelieve him?_

"I stole her life and the Cardinal made me think it was for the best. But I still stole a life. I still destroyed a baby before she had a chance to live for real." She laughed a bit. "Funny. I've killed so many with a sword, but this was a baby. She didn't deserve to have that done to her. Does anybody?" She paused, and looked up. "First time I've told anyone." She laughed innocently. "Funny, huh? I tell you, a rebel against the Cardinal, the man I serve loyally, but nobody else." Even Dartian had fallen silent.

"Why does he need more poison?" Olose asked. "He had enough for the whole city, but how would he inject everybody?"

"I-I don't know." Santia told him. "He told me he had nothing to do with it! I believed him until I saw the poison. It can't be coincidence. It just can't. I believed him! I always believed him! What if I've been wrong?"

"Then the Cardinal is poised to take over San d'Oria. We'll all fall to an evil man who would steal a life from a baby." Dartian growled.  
"And it's my fault." Santia whispered softly.

"It isn't you." Olose sighed. "If you hadn't done it, he'd of got somebody else too." Olose paused. "But this time we have to stop him."  
"Wait!" Dartian cried. "If he knows about Astra then-"

"Arcadia!" Gasped Olose. Santia regarded them with confused eyes.

**Oh Dear Lord In Heaven Not More Author's Notes: Yeah, I figured that's what you're probably thinking. Just wanted to point out that Santia IS d'Mil, but I decided to call her Santia in the second half because she's basically becoming a 'good' character, which was my final decision for her. Served as a good plot device to explain things, and made her sound kinder. Plus the small 'd' was annoying me. I also tried a new idea with the paragraphs of thoughts, hope that worked quite well to show her changing emotions. I thought it was okay when I wrote it, but it reads a bit oddly. Hopefully it's alright.**

**Anyway, I still need a bit of help with direction on the Cardinal. I'm still planning to have him currently as a guy who believes what he's doing is for the best (which does involve poisoning the whole population), so he's clearly slightly insane and very twisted. But I could make him a power crazed bad guy. I'm not sure which is best. I might just use Julie as the power crazed bad guy. Not sure yet. See? This is why it's good to have a story plan instead of making it up as you go like I do!**

**No! That wasn't me insulting my writing skills! Don't yell at me!**


	38. Saved

**CHAPTER 38**

**SAVED**

Arcadia was flopped helplessly on the bunk in the jail cell she had been thrown in. She managed to turn her head through great effort, despite the poison doing its best to make that difficult. She could see Astra's bright blue eyes peering out of the darkness. She was holding herself up, but clearly finding it difficult.

"I liked my old prison better." She commented gently. Arcadia tried to laugh, but failed. "What happens now? Do we stay here?"

"I do not know." Arcadia wheezed in reply. Unlike Astra who was used to her condition, Arcadia was finding it very difficult to even breath.

"Why did Miss Julie poison you?" Astra asked. "It doesn't seem like her." Her voice carried a confused innocence about it. "She's normally been nice to me." Astra paused. She may have behaved like an innocent child from time to time, mainly due to how sheltered her life had been, but she was no fool. "Do you think she planned this? That this was a trap? Does that mean she's never actually cared about me?" Arcadia went to reply, but was beaten to it.

"Very clever." Came a sarcastic snap from the other side of the jail cell. It was a basic stone jail, with two bunks, and bars for a door. Julie stood on the other side. "I'm glad to see you learnt a thing or two under me."

"Why?" Astra asked blankly. "Why did you do this to us?"

"You fool." Laughed Julie. "It's all quite simple. You were a threat. The Cardinal came to me and offered me San d'Oria, or at least equal rule, in return for you being disposed of. He didn't want bloodshed, so I just infected you. The same illness now occupies Arcadia's bloodstream. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"You bi-" Arcadia began.

"Be silent!" Snapped Julie.

"Wait. You made me like this?" Astra looked at her, puzzled.

"Yes." Julie stated. "It wasn't easy, it took all of my alchemy skill to create the poison. And then I had to evoke an early birth in your mother to make sure nobody wondered why you were ill. Everybody just assumes it was a side effect of an early birth." Julie chuckled to herself. "Of course, the Queen remembered eventually the spell being cast on her. So I disposed of her."

"You killed the Queen?" Arcadia gasped. "I was always told she died of a heart attack." Julie laughed aloud.

"Popular myth. The King trusted the Cardinal. Simple." Julie shrugged. "I took Astra into my care, making sure she never recovered of course, while the Cardinal began his plan."

"What is his plan?" Astra asked gently, out of plain curiosity.

"Bastok was already beginning to develop. He saw the immense potential of technology. He knew once Bastok was finished it would expand, and so he began slowly dropping hints, making the elvaan people feel threatened, and prepare for war. He managed to persuade that fool Richard that the only option was to go to war. The perfect ruse for us to lose our King in. With the Royal Family gone, he could rule San d'Oria." Julie paused.

"The elvaans will never give into him." Arcadia managed to splutter. "They are far too proud, far too strong. They will not allow him to rule."

"Oh, he's planned for that." Julie laughed. "With the poison he has available he will be able infect the entire population. Everybody will become as you two. Once San d'Oria is his, the population so physically weakened they can do nothing, he can offer a cure to those who swear loyalty. Of course, he'll make out that the cure is a miracle, and that he has a limited supply. He'll just offer it to those who are loyal because he needs to cure only people he can trust to keep San d'Oria strong, or so he'll claim. San d'Oria will be his, and anybody who might oppose him will slowly fade away."

"Why are we here, then?" Arcadia said in a breathless sigh. "Why do this to us?"

"You had to interfere." Julie growled. "I was perfectly happy to let Astra live, but she currently threatens the Cardinal's plan. And with that as a threat, I must destroy her, and you, for you know what is coming." She drew a long sword, its blade sparking in the light that filtered through the small hole at the top of the cell. "Goodbye, Astra. I can only say I'm glad I don't have to put up with your clueless whining any longer. Don't worry. It will be quick."

Arcadia tried to get up. The door was still open. If she could stand, she could run. Her arms shook uselessly, and she collapsed, panting. She couldn't do it. She simply couldn't, not in this state. Julie lowered the blade to Astra's neck.

"Who's that?" Astra asked, pointing, ignoring the blade. Julie spun around to see a grinning figure stood behind her.

"Hello." Olose Sampson beamed, grabbing her sword and throwing it to the ground. She reacted quickly, hitting him in the face and blasting him with a bolt of lightning, sending him reeling back. She picked up her sword as Olose sprang to his feet.

"How did you find me so quickly?" She asked.

"Oh, please. It became obvious you would have abducted Astra and Arcadia, and where else would you take them but to the jail?" Olose paused. "Wait. Who are you?" Julie chuckled.

"I'm the one responsible for this. The Cardinal may be a brilliant manipulator, but I'm the one who makes the poison. I'm the one responsible." She grinned at Olose's rage, especially as he spotted Arcadia and saw her suffering from the poison.

"You're the black mage!" He cried. "You're the one that made the Queen give birth to Astra early and everything that happened all those years ago!"

"Obviously." Julie sighed, swinging in with her sword. Olose blocked it and slashed downwards. Julie just managed to block it, but Olose drove upwards, striking her in the face. She stumbled back, almost falling onto Arcadia. At the last second she held out her sword, stopping Olose from advancing. "How did you get in here, anyway?" She asked, confident in her ability to win, and trying to get as much information out of Olose as possible before she killed him.

"Santia was quite helpful." Olose laughed.

"Santia?" Julie had never bothered learning the first name of any of the Temple Knights.  
"Captain d'Mil." Olose took his turn to grin.

"That traitorous whore! I'll see she dies for this! But you first!" Julie lunged Olose again, but Olose blocked her blade. She blasted him with a fireball and he flew back. She ran in to strike. She could swear her sword impacted with him, but he continued to fight, and apparently was unwounded. He slashed down, cutting her cheek and knocked her back. She turned to run. "Bind!" She cried, and Olose's feet became pinned to the floor by an invisible force.

Julie sheathed her sword and chuckled at Olose, who was now unable to move.

"Well played." Olose admitted with a shrug.

"Now you will be destroyed." Julie chuckled.

"Perhaps." Olose seemed apathetic. Julie rose an eyebrow. "Or perhaps not." He suddenly growled and dove forwards. His own trousers tore, and his shirt visible through his jacket began to rip as his muscles bulged. He didn't transform, but instead applied all his strength, and ripped the ground apart, tearing the concrete apart, still stuck to his feet. Julie's jaw dropped, utterly stunned by such strength (aided by his lycanthropic tendencies). He spun his foot up in a roundhouse kick, huge slab of concrete still attached, and smashed into Julie, taking her out. The bind spell collapsed and Olose ran to Arcadia, completely ignoring Astra. Julie had utterly collapsed, seemingly unconscious or dead, on the floor, having been smashed across the face by a huge mass of concrete.

He lifted Arcadia up in his arms. She smiled weakly.

"Sorry." She sighed.

"Don't worry." Olose smiled. "You'll be fine. Julie said the Cardinal had a cure to give out. We can find it. We can cure you. And Astra!" Astra looked up in surprise.

"You mean I can be like everybody else?" She asked.

"Yeah, sure." Olose answered, smiling. "Of course you can. We can put everything right now."

"Olose!" Arcadia exclaimed. Julie had risen, still bleeding heavily from her forehead.

"You will pay for that." She growled. "Olose huh? You must be Olose Sampson. The one the Cardinal was moaning about. He'll be so happy that I killed you." She held her sword loosely in her hand. She was clearly badly hurt.

"You're a little overconfident aren't you?" Olose laughed, drawing his own sword again.

"Perhaps." She said. Olose spun in to attack. She blocked with one hand, but it was weak. Her sword was forced down. But with her other hand she sprang forwards with an injection needle, filled with the vile white poison and injected it directly into Olose's heart. "Perhaps not." She grinned. Olose dropped his sword and staggered back. "That won't be slow acting like it was for Arcadia." She laughed. "Directly into the heart and directly into the bloodstream." Olose dropped to the floor, gasping. "I'll finish off these two while you feel the pain, then kill you." She paused. "Perhaps the Cardinal would like to kill you himself, in your weakened state there's nothing you'll be able to do." She smiled a sinister smile, turning away from Olose and flicking her sword out to Astra's neck. "Now, I do believe we were here." She grinned, beginning to press it against her skin.

"Ow. That hurts!" Astra pulled away as quickly as she could, which was not very fast. She fell over involuntarily and Julie lifted the blade back, ready to slice off Astra's head, savouring every moment. She swung the sword down, or at least attempted too. She had run into a problem.

That problem was her arm was no longer where she had left it. It wasn't even attached to her body. It had been ripped off. A gigantic werewolf growled, holding her torn off arm, before tossing it to the ground. Olose reverted into his human form as the screaming Julie slid to the floor, blood pouring everywhere. Luckily Olose was still wearing the tattered remains of his trousers. Julie bled on the floor in disbelief.

"Impossible." She managed to say.

"I'm a werewolf. No illness can affect me." Olose told her angrily, before kicking her in the chest. She flew back and slammed into the concrete wall, dropping down. He kicked out, pinning her neck to the wall and began to choke her. "I already know a one armed elvaan. Would hate for things to get confusing." Olose let out an angry smirk as Julie gasped for air. "Guess you have to go then."

"You're a killer, aren't you?" Julie managed to growl. "You may try to act heroic, but I can see it in your eyes. You're a murderer." Julie smirked to herself, despite her lack of oxygen. "How many people have you killed, eh? Any friends? Any family?" Olose tightened the pressure on her neck.

"Shut up!" He snapped. "You threatened me! You threatened by love! You deserve to die!"

"Did everybody else you killed deserve to die?" She grinned. She knew the legends of the werewolf curse, and she knew what Olose must have done in the past. Olose paused.

"No. But the past is irrelevant." He told her. "You will die here." Julie was fast losing consciousness.

"One catch." She decided to change her plan. "I'm the only one who can create a cure for your little girlfriend over there. You wouldn't want me to die, would you? None of it exists. I'm the only one who can make some." Olose removed his foot and she gasped for breath, but let out a victorious smile.  
"Watch." Olose stated, before flipping up the fallen needle with his foot. He jabbed it in his own arm and sucked out his blood. He ran over to Arcadia and injected her with his own blood. "Werewolf blood. The ultimate cure. The lycanthropic curse can't be transmitted by a blood flow, only by a bite or birth. But the defences in my blood that protect me against any illness _can_." He grinned. "Yeah, I've read about the werewolf legends too." Olose had guessed that Julie was familiar with the legends, judging by how she guessed his character, but Olose himself had done months of research about his condition, especially with the assistance of Arcadia's library. He removed the needle, sucked out more of his own blood, and injected Astra, who winced painfully at the needle.

"Ow! It hurts! It hurts!" She whined, not knowing what it was going to feel like, and being incredibly frail.

"Don't worry." Olose removed it. "It won't anymore."

Julie let out an angry growl, reaching for her sword. She managed to get to her feet, and attacked, swinging the blade. Olose smirked, and ducked under it, pulling a dagger from his still intact belt and driving it into her throat. She stumbled back as he drew his sword, and he took a slice, beheading her. Arcadia suddenly sat up, the colour back in her.

"Wow." She muttered. "That is more effective than those potions." Olose just laughed, walking towards her. She jumped into his arms with a happy sigh. Astra sat up slowly.

"I feel funny." She commented, her skin becoming a pale, yet healthy colour. Living deprived of sunlight meant that she had no tan like most elvaans, but she was at least clearly healthy.

"You're just normal." Olose smiled. "Even a disease rooted in your system is no match for werewolf blood." He explained. "The ultimate cure."

"We should market you." Arcadia joked.

"Hey! I need some of this blood, you know?" Olose laughed. Astra stood up, and instinctively put her hands on the wall. She paused, realising her legs weren't struggling to support her. She slowly pulled her hands back, shaking a bit as she got her balance.

"I can stand up!" She exclaimed, far louder than necessary, but she wasn't used to not needing to put so much energy into her voice. She walked around a bit, quite often stabilising herself on the walls, before realising she didn't need it. She cautiously lifted one foot off the ground, and shakily stood on one foot. She lost her balance quickly, but had a grin plastered over her face at the fact that she hadn't fallen over. Olose smiled. "I'm cured!" She cried. "Everybody said it was impossible."

"Well, I am pretty great." Olose smirked sarcastically. She ran in and hugged him, far faster than she thought.

"I feel so strong!" She exclaimed, squeezing Olose as hard as she could to demonstrate. Olose chuckled.

"Don't go telling other people that." He advised, feeling her weak hug. "You may be cured, but your muscles have been severely underused, it's going to be a long time before you have the strength of an ordinary person."

"So, what now?" Arcadia asked.

"Well, Captain d'Mil is waiting outside for us, she got the Temple Knights to leave, and kept them dismissed.. I suggest we get back to Dartian." He began to walk out.

"Wait? D'Mil?" Arcadia said in shock.  
"Yeah, turns out she's seen the light." Olose answered. Arcadia gave him a sceptical look. "No really, she has. Told me the whole story. I'll explain it on the way." He walked out, and they followed. "Watch yourselves on the streets, I have them rioting against the Cardinal. A bit of a bad move, but it might buy us some freedom, and especially delay the Cardinal taking the throne."

The Cardinal sat on the mighty chair, deep in thought. He regarded the young lieutenant who told him that Princess Astra was gone, that Julie was beheaded within the jail cell, and that the jailer who had hidden reported seeing Olose Sampson fleeing with two unknown women.

"This is a problem." The Cardinal admitted. The head of the San d'Orian parliament approached the Cardinal.

"Your eminence, the vote is in." The Cardinal turned to the head of parliament, and motioned with his hand for the old elvaan to speak. "They have agreed to give you power, and that if you take it, it is officially yours, and that the Royal Family is denounced. They have agreed it is the best way to stop chaos in the city over who to support." The Cardinal allowed himself a pleasurable grin.

"Excellent." He stated. "We must hold the coronation as soon as possible. I fear that the city is getting more and more out of control."

"I do not know if they will be willing to do that, yet." The head of parliament admitted. "This Sampson figure has them in uproar, and they are starving."

"Then tomorrow morning, we will give them back their food. That will show them that I am a kind man, and they shall flock to me." He smiled a knowing smile, but the head of parliament didn't quite understand why.

"A good suggestion, your eminence." He grinned innocently. "I guess then, by tomorrow evening, you will be king." The Cardinal grinned himself.

Olose, Santia, Astra and Arcadia all walked into the small room in the tavern. Only Astra didn't have a look of shock on her face, she was still busy being thrilled with the big city, the new places she was seeing, and the awesome energy she had flowing through her now her illness was gone. She blinked innocently.

"Why is it all smashed up?" She asked. "And where is that nice Dartian person you were telling me about?" The others did not reply. They simply surveyed the carnage. Dartian was nowhere to be seen. Olose quickly noticed the poison was no longer there.

"I have a bad feeling about this." He whispered.

**Author's Note: Check it out! A chapter with no author's note! WOOHOOH!**

**Wait.**

**Oh darn.**


	39. Infiltration

**Author's Note: I have encountered a plot hole. Not a very major one, but a plot hole none the less. It seems when Arcadia is introduced, she says she is the daughter of 'Lord Valance', however, later on, her father is called Andrew. Oops. Well, I've made an excuse this chapter, but will probably go back and correct it at some point. In this chapter Arcadia actually mentions her father and explains why he has two names. But at least I finally noticed it there.**

**This chapter has a lot happening in the elvaan chateau too, which is nothing like it is in the game. I use the good ol' '600 years before' excuse. The Chateau got remodelled at some point clearly! Or at least its interior layout!**

**Oh, and about the one word chapter titles. I've stuck to them so far because it's quite effective to sum up the whole chapter in one word, and I prefer to have one style of title throughout (apart from the 'The Twilight of the Immortal' chapter, but that was intentional for effect of it being the final battle between Abaj and Olose). So I'm going to do my best to stick to them. I say my best because I'm running out of words to describe chapters. So I might have to stop it later and come up with more creative things.**

**Anyway, this chapter was a bit rubbish, mainly because nothing unexpected happened and no new plot bits were really revealed. I worked on developing Astra and Arcadia a little instead, but it didn't really help. I've actually enjoyed how this storyline's been going, I thought it was coming out well, so this is the first chapter I'm officially disappointed in and felt was bad since the whole last story leg. That I think was flawed purely because we all knew exactly what was going to happen, and it was just me stalling them by throwing things at them. This time the plot has been evolving as they've been finding out more things and battling a real villain. But yes, this chapter was a bit worse than the others. Hopefully it'll still be enjoyable though! **

**CHAPTER 39**

**INFILTRATION**

"What are you talking about, Olose?" Arcadia asked. "What poison?"

"We found a whole shipment of that poison intended for delivery to the Cardinal. We think he plans to infect the population with it."

"That matches up with what Julie said." Arcadia agreed.

"I'm only one man. Don't quite have enough blood to cure everyone." Olose sighed.

"So you had the poison. All of it. And you _lost _it?" Arcadia asked in disbelief.

"Dartian was supposed to keep an eye on it!" Olose protested. Astra walked around for a bit in a daze, and quickly left the room. Olose shot a curious look to Arcadia. "What was that?" He asked.

"I will go and check. You decide what to do with Santia." Arcadia walked out after Astra. Olose turned to Santia.

"That was odd." He muttered. "So, what now?"

Astra was stood in the street, watching people pass. But that expression of fascination had faded. She looked miserable.

"Are you okay?" Arcadia asked gently. Astra shook her head, sending her long hair waving everywhere. "What is bothering you?"

"I want to kill the Cardinal." She answered. She paused, reconsidering her words. "Not just kill. But hurt. Watch him bleed and die slowly." She paused a second time and turned to Arcadia. "Am I a bad person?" She asked suddenly. Arcadia laughed.

"No. Of course not." She answered. "You've lived your entire life unable to do so much as stand up thanks to the Cardinal. It's perfectly natural to hate him. To want to kill him."

"But Miss Julie always taught me to not think like that. She even took away any books with violence or killing in them." She paused. "I always thought she didn't want me learning about violence. I think she didn't want me trying to hurt her."

"Stop you from rebelling against her by shielding you from all thoughts of violence." Arcadia figured. "She was clever. But completely evil."

"She was nice to me for so long." Astra looked at the people passing in the city. "She was more of a parent to me than my father. Should I care more that Miss Julie died than my real father?"

"Your father was really kind to you. He really cared for you. She was just kind to you so that you would stay where she wanted. She poisoned you, remember?" Arcadia told Astra. Astra paused.

"I'm glad she's dead." She said plainly. "I'm a horrible person."

"No you're not." Arcadia smiled. "I think you'll be a great ruler though."

Santia had sat down, and Olose paced, listing the problems.

"The Cardinal needs to poison the population. But how? He can't inject everybody, that's impossible." Olose paused.

"Then he must need to use another form of infection." Santia shrugged.

"He can't send it through the air, can he?" Olose asked, concerned.

"That would be impossible to control. His guards would fall victim too." Santia pointed out casually.

"The water supply isn't regulated. Drinks comes from wells, so that's impossible." Olose disregarded yet another theory. "But there must be an answer here somewhere." Arcadia and Astra hurried in.

"Look at this!" Arcadia handed over a flyer to Olose. "The knights are sticking them up all over the city." Olose scanned it.

"It says the Cardinal shall be crowned king tomorrow evening!" Olose gasped. "We have to stop him!" Santia read over it too. "And to celebrate, he's going to give out the rest of the food he's confiscated." Olose paused, and his jaw dropped as Santia's eyes went wide. "Oh, hell no!"

"What's wrong?" Astra asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.  
"If the Cardinal infects that food with his poison, then the entire population of San d'Oria will become as you were. They're all starving out there. They're going to gobble up that food instantly." Olose explained. "We have to stop him. Now."

"How?" Arcadia asked. "If we're going to get a shot at getting to the Cardinal safely, it's going to be during is coronation, when we can present Astra as a challenge under the safety of the ceremony."

"We can't wait until then. By then the poison will be spreading and the citizens will be suffering too much to stop anything the Cardinal does. We need to stop him tonight!"

"The Chateau d'Oraguille is impenetrable under lockdown, like it is right now." Santia explained. "There's no way we can get in."

"Not for a mortal." Olose grinned.

"You can't fight your way in." Santia decided. "Too many guards, even for you. And they'll know I'm a traitor by now."

"There must be another way." Olose decided. "Nowhere is completely impenetrable."

"The Chateau is." Santia answered with all of her elvaan pride. "There is no underground passage you can use, and the walls are solid constructions that are impossible to climb."

"What about from above?" Astra blinked innocently. "We could just come down from the sky."

"Yeah, except for that fact that we can't fly." Olose sighed.

"He doesn't mean to be cruel. It was a good suggestion." Arcadia said kindly to Astra.

"So, you think the walls can't be climbed?" Olose asked Santia. Santia rose an eyebrow.

"They're made of solid stone. So, yes." She answered bluntly.

"Even by a werewolf?" Olose asked with a slight smile.

Two of the Temple Knights lounged around sleepily on guard duty upon the mighty walls of the chateau. Both heard the strange scratching sound, but neither bothered to react. They were guarding a tower in the mighty Chateau d'Oraguille, and it was currently under lockdown to protect the new Cardinal. Nothing could get in, which made them fairly obsolete. The scratching sound, however, got louder.

"Stupid birds." One commented. There was a pause before the suspect reached the top of the wall and leapt into the tower.

"That's no bird." The second muttered. Olose, in full werewolf form, growled. The two Temple Knights reached for their blades, but they fainted from fear as Olose let out an inhuman roar. Olose turned back into his human form and smirked.

"Won't mind if I borrow these?" He asked one of the unconscious guards, before bending down and taking their red tunic.

Olose strolled through the chateau, actually surprised that nobody stopped him and asked him who he was, since he was technically a stranger in a uniform. It was just as he was having those thoughts that somebody stopped him and asked who he was. He cursed to himself for tempting fate.

"Urm, transfer from the outer gate." He tried.

"Transfer? We're the Temple Knights. We're supposed to stay at the chateau. Sure, I knew the Cardinal had sent a few knights over that way, but you shouldn't been transferred back." The Temple Knight explained to him.

"Oh. Got a better explanation?" Olose asked.

"I think you're a spy." The knight explained.

"I meant one that got me off the hook." Olose casually said. The knight drew his sword.

"I'm taking you right to the Cardinal." He spat.

"Oh, what a tragedy." Olose sighed, knowing it was exactly where he wanted to go. "Well, you got me. Take me there right away!" The Knight smiled.

"You cocky son of a…" He trailed off, slapping handcuffs on Olose. "You aren't going to get out of those. So that little escape plan forming in your head is over."

"I'm doomed." Olose muttered with as much enthusiasm as a dieing hornet.

Santia was distracted, going over plans to the ceremony planned for the coronation of the Cardinal while Arcadia and Astra chatted to each other. Arcadia was trying to help Astra understand more about what was going on and the world around her.

"So, why doesn't everybody just go and get rid of the Cardinal?" She asked. "He's being mean, so if we got rid of him, we wouldn't have a problem." Arcadia smiled at her innocence.

"It is not that simple." She explained. "We cannot just go and get rid of the Cardinal because he has the Temple Knights supporting him. Even further, there is the matter of honour involved, the Cardinal _is _the ruler of San d'Oria. Going against him counts as treason."

"Why is he in charge then? When he's evil?" Astra asked.

"He was a skilled liar." Arcadia gave in explanation. "Technically, you should be in charge."

"So why am I not?" Astra asked, doing her best to sound like Arcadia. Santia giggled slightly, hearing that Astra was trying to imitate Arcadia's posh accent. She clearly looked up to Arcadia a huge amount, and took her as a role model. Santia thought to herself that Astra could have made a better choice, but remained silent.

"You will be." Arcadia explained. "Tomorrow, at the coronation, we shall present you and you will take the throne from the Cardinal. The people of San d'Oria will have to swear allegiance to you."

"So I will be in charge." She said, sounding unsure of herself. "Of all the city? What will I do?"  
"I will do my best to help you." Arcadia told her. "You will have advisors to help you the best they can. It will not be easy, but you will adapt."

"What about the poison?" Astra asked.

"Well, if the Cardinal successfully deploys it, then nobody will be able to oppose of him, and you can be disposed of." Astra gulped as Arcadia explained this. "But do not worry! That will not happen! Olose has never failed."

"He does this sort of thing a lot?" Santia asked, casually looking up from the papers she was reading.

"You have no idea." Arcadia sighed.

"I think I have an idea." Astra said. "It's not a very good one, but certainly is one." Arcadia chuckled.

"No, it is a figure of speech." Arcadia explained. "It means you do not realise just what he is like."

"Well, of course I don't. I've only known him for a few hours." Astra answered. Santia laughed and Arcadia rolled her eyes with a smile.

The Cardinal smiled as soon as he saw Olose dragged in.

"Olose Sampson, I presume." He stated.

"Sampson?" The Temple Knight exclaimed. "I captured _the _Olose Sampson?"

"Quiet." The Cardinal ordered. The Temple Knight fell silent.

"Pleased to meet you, your worshipfulness." Olose grinned.

"You will not be so confident when I execute you, Sampson." The Cardinal told him.

"Of course, execution. Sure follow the teachings of Altana there." Olose taunted.

"Do not claim to know my intentions!" The Cardinal cried. "I follow Altana and what is best for this city! There would be no need for bloodshed if people like you would just settle down and let me rule!"

"What? Hand the city over to you on a silver platter?" Olose asked. "It's not going to happen. We aren't going to keel over to your wishes. You manipulate, lie and kill."

"I follow Altana!" The Cardinal protested.

"Like hell you do!" Olose cried back. "You're planning to poison everybody just so that nobody can protest. Altana stands for all of us, not just one power crazy cardinal!"

"How dare you speak to me like that?" The Cardinal roared. Olose snapped the chain on his handcuffs with ease.

"Because I know I can kill you at any moment." He grinned.

Astra had been looking at a painting of her father that Santia had found and shown her.

"He looks bigger there." She smiled. "Did he grow?"

"No." Arcadia laughed. "They just made him look taller for the picture. It makes him look more powerful."

"What's your father like?" Astra asked with a cocked head as she continued to look at the picture.

"Very loving, but quite strange." She decided. "He is called Lord Andrew, but he always makes me introduce him by his middle name. Valance. He thinks it sounds more impressive. He says Andrew is too boring so he trained me to introduce him by something that sounded better."

"And your mother?" Astra cocked her head the other way, as if looking at the picture from another angle would answer everything.

"She's nice. Sweet, pleasant. Likes winding my father up by pointing out all of his eccentricities. But they love each other very much." Arcadia explained. "They even get along with Olose." Astra giggled.

"It's funny when you make fun of him." She commented, pointing out the obvious, but deciding to make a note of it anyway.

"Yes, it can be. Olose is a rather amusing person." Arcadia replied.

The Temple Knight slammed into the wall and dropped down. Olose centred himself after his roundhouse kick, and stood before the Cardinal.

"Kill me and you'll never escape." The Cardinal warned.

"I won't kill you." Olose said calmly. "And I'll cover my escape." He walked towards the large dining room just to the left of the throne room. He grinned. "Thought you would be keeping the food in here." He looked at the mass of poisoned food. "I can smell that vile stuff from here. Had to keep it hidden until you return it, eh?"

"When I do, any traitors like you will be subdued and I shall rule peacefully." The Cardinal stated. "The King was weak. He led his people to war and lost."

"You manipulated that war!" Olose spat.

"A strong leader would have resisted manipulation. It is clear that I should take control." The Cardinal answered.

"He trusted you!" Olose cried.

"Then he was mistaken and shouldn't lead. I should." The Cardinal said plainly.

"Oh, got a bit of news for you." Olose said with a smirk. He drew a match from his pocket and lit it. "That poison of yours is very effective." The match burnt down and the Cardinal watched curiously. "But it's also flammable." He tossed the match into the room, and the food erupted into flames.  
"NO!" The Cardinal screamed, running down towards Olose. He grabbed a sword from the fallen Temple Knight and attacked. Olose blocked his attack and kicked him across the head, knocking him out. He grinned and ran.

Temple Knights blocked his way, swords drawn.

"The Cardinal is unconscious in there and your precious castle is burning." Olose told them. "Choose now. Me or him." The Temple Knights looked at each other and rushed past Olose to save the Cardinal. Olose grinned a bright smile and ran, knowing now that his escape route was clear.

He skidded to a halt as two Temple Knights drew their weapons.

"We're not letting you go!" One cried. He went to attack, but a sword pierced his heart and he dropped down. The other turned around, but it was too late. He too fell dead.

"What can I say?" Shrugged Dartian from behind. "We just don't make our prisons like we used to."

"Dartian!" Exclaimed Olose. "Come on! We need to escape, now!"

"Yeah, I could smell the smoke. Way to go." Olose had a feeling Dartian was being sarcastic.

"C'mon! We have to get out of here!"

The two ran to freedom while the Temple Knights desperately attempted to stop the raging fire.


	40. Coronation

**Author's Note: Hello, my name is Vivli and I'm addicted to making author's notes. Ahem. That's a lie. My name's not _actually _Vivli. Anyway, a few pointers, as you may notice, this story leg is fast coming to an end, which is a shame, I really enjoyed it, my favourite so far, but it has to end or else it'll just be dragged out. This means I need to move onto a new one. Uh oh. There's a problem. I've officially run out of ideas. I have no idea what I'm going to do for the next adventure. I have one lined up, but it deals with San d'Oria _again _and I want a break from it, so there's got to be something in-between. I do have a one chapter story coming up, after this, which should be interesting. I say interesting, because I'm going to be doing it in a very different style. It's a fairly major event for Olose, so I want to do it in a way that makes it seem different.**

**Anyway, that's not for a while. Basically, there's one more chapter of this story, then the one I have planned, then I'm out of ideas. I may come up with one soon, might watch a movie and get an idea from it like I usually do, or read something, but otherwise I could be in trouble. As a request, if any of you out there have an idea for an adventure you want to see Olose and friends on, please feel free to say, because I can then adapt it and use it in the story. Of course, giving credit to you, rather than just stealing everybody else's ideas. Otherwise I had better get on with coming up with a good idea!**

**Out of interest, if you want to know how bad my author's notes addiction is, look at it this way. This story is, according to is 111855 words long. My copy of it on the computer without any notes is 99030 words long. That means, according to my calculator, there are 12825 words of author's notes in this story (and that isn't including this story). That's over twelve thousand words! So, sorry for all the rambling everybody, it is a ridiculously large amount. (Not that I've learn my lesson, look at the length of this note!).**

**CHAPTER 40**

**CORONATION**

The Cardinal flung open the door to his resting chambers and marched out, literally storming into a gathered group of his advisors and members of the elvaan parliament.

"Your eminence, please, you need rest." One began. The Cardinal angrily pushed him over and marched on by.

"Begin the coronation!" He ordered.  
"But sir, the chateau is burnt, the food is destroyed, the people are rioting-"

"Then tell them the coronation is underway to quell the rebel activity that has done this." The Cardinal instructed. "I can tell them myself, with a speech to the masses. We'll turn this Sampson figure around on them, make him their enemy."

"He's a powerful figure, your eminence, I don't know if that's possible-"

"I will make it possible!" The Cardinal yelled angrily. "I _shall _be crowned king as soon as possible. It's the only way to stop more outbursts like this! The damage to the chateau exceeds any in elvaan history! We _must _get the city under control!" The Cardinal stormed out before anybody could say anything else. One of the advisors sighed, wondering why he had advisors if he never listened to their advice.

Olose caught Santia running towards him as he approached with Dartian at his side.

"What did you do?" She screamed. "Why are there plumes of smoke coming from the chateau?"

"Hey, you're the one that told me the poison was flammable." Olose shrugged.

"I said as a _last _resort!" Santia sighed. "Dartian!" She suddenly cried. "You're alive!" Her face beamed an enormous grin.

"Last time I checked." Dartian laughed back. Santia quickly composed herself again, and looked up at the chateau.

"What do you think the Cardinal will do now?" She asked.

"Get crowned. Probably even sooner. He'll think it's the only way to get the city back under control from rebels like us." Olose guessed.

"So, what do we do?" Santia asked in a shrug.

"We stop him." Olose grinned.

The three walked back into the room in the tavern, which had been sufficiently cleaned up since the Temple Knights had raided it.

"Olose!" Arcadia ran to him, and hugged him happily. "I hear you almost burnt down the elvaan chateau. Sounds like you." She said sarcastically. Olose laughed. "Dartian! You're alive!"

"So everybody keeps saying." Dartian shot, before he turned to Astra. His eyes went wide, and he dropped to one knee. "Your Highness." He said simply. "I am Dartian Loneheart, the only survivor of the Royal Guard and your loyal servant and protector." Astra looked at him in surprise.

"Urm. Okay." She answered, confused. Dartian smiled, rising.  
"How may I serve you?" He asked.

"I'm okay." She answered. "But I think I might need your help before the end of this all."  
"Of course." Dartian smiled. "So, what's the plan Olose?"  
"The Cardinal shall be crowned king tomorrow evening." Olose stated. "I'd imagine he'll stick to that time scheme, using the rest of the day to drum up support of the elvaan population. Once he's crowned, nobody can oppose him. The elvaan line of royalty will be dead. We have to stop him _before _hand. I say we interrupt the ceremony with Astra's presence, which means there will be no way he can resist us. Astra is the true heir."

"Sounds simple." Dartian muttered.

"It won't be. The Cardinal will do his best to stop us. Even once we present Astra I'd imagine he'll have a few tricks up his sleeves. But don't worry, I have one or two myself." Olose smiled.

"Being immortal is not a trick." Arcadia sighed. "You pull it every time."

"Well, not my fault I can't be killed." Olose laughed.

"I've been studying the plans for the ceremony." Santia explained. "I think I know how we can get in."

"Fantastic." Olose grinned, getting ready to hear it.

The city was abuzz with people. The following day had come and the coronation wasn't far away. Huge crowds had gathered around the Chateau d'Oraguille, although only the very richest and most powerful were allowed inside, along with all the guards.

Inside in the mighty presentation room, hoards of Temple Knights and elvaan soldiers stood in perfect formal lines, leaving one long stretch of red carpet running up to the throne. A massive balcony extended around the room, filled with spectators. Even more spectators got to sit in the chairs on the ground floor, surrounded by guards. At the front of the proceedings stood the head of the elvaan parliament, flanked by other members.

"With great pleasure, I present to you, Cardinal Treville!" He spoke, and the Cardinal emerged, in a long flowing red robe, walking down the main stretch towards the throne. People turned their heads in awe as he approached.

Outside, two Temple Knights listened intently to the proceedings within, desperate to hear part of history. When they turned back, their eyes went wide. Olose grinned, and hit one. The other went to draw his sword, but a swift kick took him out. Olose turned around.

"Right. Dartian. Santia. You take the ground floor when you hear things kick off within and get my signal. Keep Astra with you and lie low. If you fail now, the entire plan will be destroyed." Olose explained.

"Got it." Dartian nodded. Astra whimpered slightly.

"I'm scared." She said softly.

"Do not worry, your highness, no harm will come to you." Dartian vowed. "I swear it." Olose nodded to the others, and ran for the stairs leading up to the balcony. There was a pause, and an unconscious Temple Knight rolled down the steps.

"Damn. He's good." Santia muttered.

"Maybe you just weren't very good at training." Dartian mocked.

The Cardinal placed his hand on the golden sceptre held before him.

"Do you vow to protect and love this land no matter the hardships it may encounter?" The head of parliament continued to read the list of vows the Cardinal was taking.  
"I do." The Cardinal swore.

""And to love its people, and to protect them?"

"I do."

"To guard this land from any evil and to lead us with all the strength of an elvaan king?"

"I do."

"Then, I am proud to crown you-"

"NOT SO FAST!" Came a cry from a balcony. Everybody gasped and looked up. Olose Sampson was stood, sword in hand, on the thick stone railing around the balcony. Temple Knights rushed Olose, but he beat them back easily. He drove one back, flipping the sword out of his hand and knocking him out. Another ran in, swinging her blade, and he ducked under it, before lunging upwards knocking her unconscious. Yet one more ran in, but Olose parried his blade and threw him off of the balcony.

"Sampson!" Growled the Cardinal.

"You cannot let this evil tyrant rule!" Olose spat. "He planned to poison you all! He planned the war, to dispose of the King! He even tried to dispose of the Princess!"

"Olose Sampson, you're crimes are high in number and your statements without evidence." The head of parliament stated simply. "You shall be executed for your interference."

"My statements have plenty of evidence." Olose grinned. "Besides, you can't crown him king."

"And why is that?" The Cardinal was shaking with rage, but the head of parliament remained calm.

"Because Princess Astra lives!" Olose bellowed, and the mighty main doors to the room swung open.

Astra walked in in a long flowing white gown, flanked by Dartian and Santia. She had a tiara Arcadia had provided upon her head, and it certainly made her look the part. The crowd turned to her in shock, all baffled, and none too sure how to react.

"Princess Astra?" Exclaimed the head of parliament.

"Yes. I live." She stated. "Despite the best efforts of the Cardinal to keep me subdued."

"Everybody knows Princess Astra died at birth!" The Cardinal spat.

"Let us consider what we are seeing, Cardinal." Warned the head of parliament.  
"She is an impostor! Destroy her!" The Cardinal cried. The Temple Knights obeyed, seeing no reason to trust the strange elvaan woman. They drew their swords and ran forwards. Olose leapt from above and cut them off.

He began to beat them back as Santia and Dartian ran to his side. Astra started to shake in fear. The three heroes were outnumbered, but the Temple Knights clearly had their doubts.

"Captain d'Mil?" One asked, astonished, sheathing his sword.

"This is indeed Princess Astra." She said in response. "You are now committing treason against San d'Oria."

"She's insane! She's been plotting against me from day one!" The Cardinal yelled. Olose took a few hits, but continued to beat them back. One knight had managed to sneak up behind Astra, and grabbed her, placing a sword to her neck.

"Stop! Or I'll kill her!" He cried confidently. The three heroes ceased their fight, and turned to him.

"Okay." Olose said calmly. "Don't hurt her. Just, put the sword down."  
"Drop your weapons!" Cried the knight. They did so. Astra had begun to cry, her tears flowing freely with her newfound strength in a way she'd never have imagined.

"Somebody that weak should never lead anyway." The Cardinal grumbled. "Take her to the prison. Execute the others." He turned back to the head of parliament. "Proceed with the ceremony."

"_You will not!_" A deep booming voice declared from the doorway. Once again everybody's attention was flung to the doors.

A figure in bright silver armour, ordained with golden markings and the golden crest of the royal family upon its chest stood there, thick brown hair and a neat beard hanging from his face. A bright red cape flew behind him proudly. He was instantly recognised.

"Impossible." Gasped the Cardinal. King Richard took several determined steps forwards. The Royal Guard flanked him on all sides, looking war torn, but alive. Dartian noticed many were missing, dozens, but they must have perished in war like his friends.

"Treville, you are under arrest for treason. You shall be executed!" The King boomed.

"Never!" The Cardinal cried. "No! You can't be alive!" He was in total shock. Tarrak shot Olose a smile from the King's side.

"Told you I'd find him." He said casually. Olose grinned back.

"You _dare _to even _speak _to me?" Growled the King, sword in hand. "You took my kingdom, you stopped supplies to us during the war, you tried to kill me, you try to steal the crown, and then I walk in to see your knights with a sword at my daughter's throat?"

"Destroy him!" The Cardinal cried to his Temple Knights. "He is weak! He led us to ruin in the war with Bastok!"

"You did that yourself by manipulating our supplies! You cost us the war, not me!" The King roared.

"Kill him!" The Cardinal screamed. The Temple Knights didn't move. Dartian dropped to one knee before his king. A smile crept across the King's face.

"I am loyal to you, my king." Dartian stated. Santia dropped beside him.

"As am I." She said.

"And me." Olose dropped down. Tarrak lowered as well. The Royal Guard all fell to their knees before him. The Temple Knights sheathed their weapons and did the same. The entire room dropped down, on one knee, before the king, except for the Cardinal.

"No! You fools!" The Cardinal screamed. He drew a sword from a nearby knight and hurled it at the King. Olose sprang up and took the hit, the sword ripping through him. Everybody froze in shock. The King looked at him in awe.

"Thank you." He said simply.

"That hurt." Olose confessed, before pulling the sword out of his chest. "Treville!" He cried as the wound healed. The King looked on in shock. "I'm afraid this isn't over!"  
"Oh, you pathetic brat!" Screamed the Cardinal, grabbing another blade. "I'll kill you! I'll rip you to shreds!" He ran at Olose. Olose ran in and the two began to duel.

Olose swung his blade overhead as the Cardinal was forced to block, being driven back. The two reached up to the throne before the Cardinal managed to jab forwards, putting Olose on the defensive. They duelled backwards and burst out of the doors at the rear of the throne room into the rest of the castle.

The two fought through the stone corridor, swords clashing as they did. The Cardinal tried to fight with fencing elegance, but he didn't stand a chance against Olose's brute force. He turned to flee, and ran to the dungeons. Olose pursued, and the two began to duel down the mighty stone steps, the torches creating a gigantic shadow of the duellists upon the wall as they fought down them. The Cardinal tripped on his own long flowing robe, and fell down the steps, crashing down at the bottom.

Olose leapt downwards, sword still drawn. The Cardinal ran to the side, spotting Astra watching in awe at the top of the steps. He grinned, slicing at Olose's shins. This distracted Olose enough for him to run up the steps. Olose pursued, but it was too late, the Cardinal grabbed Astra and held a sword to her neck. She screamed in shock.

"You coward!" Olose yelled. "Stop hiding behind her and fight!"

"You're one to speak, Sampson." The Cardinal spat. "You monster. You're a werewolf. I thought your kind was wiped clean when my Temple Knights purged you all those years ago. I knew one survived, Abaj Tuh came to me to sell their location. But a second? You monsters should never have been allowed to walk Vana'diel."

"There's only one monster here, and he's holding a sword to a young girl." Olose said in a growl.

"Goodbye, Olose Sampson." The Cardinal smiled. "Here's a little trick Julie taught me." Astra squirmed in horror, before the two of them disappeared in a flash of light.  
"What?" Olose gasped. He bolted back up to the throne room.

He literally ran into King Richard who was stood at the top of the stairway.

"Hold on." The King said calmly.

"The Cardinal just warped aw-" Olose began.  
"I know. I saw." The King stated. "I know where he is going. He shall be fleeing to Windurst. It is where he learnt those powers."

"Is he powerful enough to make that journey just using his warp spell?" Olose asked.

"I imagine not." The King told Olose. "He will have warped to his personal elvaan warship. We have to catch him before he gets there. Once he's in Windurst, he can start all over again, doing what he did here."

"You can count on me, your highness." Olose nodded.

"Can you pursue him? Do you need a ship?" The King asked.  
"Oh no." Olose grinned. "I have a ship."


	41. Chase

**CHAPTER 41**

**CHASE**

Nadia let out a loud groan as she awoke to her link pearl started to vibrate, alerting her that somebody wanted to talk to her. She reached out a hand and grabbed it, considering how it was far too late at night for somebody to contact her as she did so. Of course, this meant, due to the nature of linkshells, the caller on the other end heard her considering how late it was, due to the linkshell's tendency to transmit thoughts.

"Late? It's only ten o'clock!" Olose laughed.

"Sir?" Grumbled Nadia. "We had a bit of a party last night. Bit of drinking. Stayed out. Tired." She muttered, her voice muffled by the pillow her face was buried in.

"Party? All of you?" Olose said, obviously sad that he missed out.

"Yeah, except Suse, but it's past her bedtime anyway." She paused. "Even Phabrizoe. You wouldn't believe how much that little guy can drink."  
"Yes. Anyway, can you get the _Destiny _ready?" Olose asked quickly.

"Urm, yeah. We're down in Seblina anyway. Why?" Nadia questioned.

"We're going hunting." Olose gave in explanation, and Nadia could almost _hear _his grin.

Nadia wondered out of her room with a wide yawn and a grumble, stumbling to the first room she could find. She knocked on the door. Nothing. She swung it open and wondered in, bursting into a fit of laughter as she spotted Trevia on the bed, curled up tightly like a typical feline, certainly lacking any appearance to suggest she was a hardened assassin. She was snuggled tightly against a pillow, and let out a peaceful purr, which just made Nadia laugh louder. Trevia jolted awake to this, and sat up quickly, blushing.

"Don't you knock?" She snapped in rage, knowing fully well just how embarrassing her sleeping habits could be, especially when she was in a comfortable bed and not the hammocks of the _Destiny_.

"Yes. I did." Nadia answered. "C'mon. Olose wants us."

"_Now_? It's the middle of the night." Trevia groaned uncharacteristically.

"It's only ten o'clock, to be fair." Nadia pointed out.

"Stupid party." Trevia huffed, still half asleep and so not acting entirely like herself.

Olose was almost sprinting through San d'Oria, heading towards the gate.

"Where are you going?" Santia called after him. Her and Dartain were in close pursuit.

"Seblina." Olose answered, slipping out of his brown jacket. "Hold on to that. I think I can catch the Cardinal." Santia looked at the jacket in confusion.

"Urm, how?" She asked.

"I'll take on my werewolf form, and get to Seblina. From there I can take my ship and catch up with the Cardinal."

"The Cardinal has an elvaan battle cruiser!" Dartian exclaimed. Olose knew elvaan battle cruisers were their finest warships, but they called them 'battle cruisers' instead of 'battleships' because it sounded more impressive. "You had better have one helluva ship." Olose paused, considering what his crew would have to say on the subject.  
"Well, I have _a _ship." He replied. "Don't you worry. Not even the Cardinal can avoid _Destiny_." Olose had a feeling he greatly overused that pun, but luckily neither Dartian or Santia had heard it before. "Right. I'll be back later. Make sure Arcadia is alright." Olose burst into his mighty werewolf form and disappeared into the night, leaving Santia and Dartian looking at each other, confused.

It was some time later when the Cardinal walked along the deck of his proud elvaan ship, the _Justifier_, and turned to its commander.

"Your eminence?" Bowed the elvaan commander.

"Commander Nartak." The Cardinal stated. "Have you finished our preparations to leave? I am pressed for time."

"Yes, your eminence." Nartak answered, dressed in a naval version of the Temple Knight uniform. "We can get underway."

"Good." The Cardinal shot. "I fear we have spent too much time preparing for our exit already."  
"We were unaware you would be requiring the _Justifier_, she was not prepared." Nartak explained.

"I am aware. There has been a change of plans." The Cardinal stated. "Hoist the anchor. We need to leave immediately."

"Yes, your eminence." Nartak bowed, and the _Justifier's _anchor was risen. The gigantic multi-decked warship began to slowly move through the water.

Olose slipped into a spare shirt, marching up onto the deck of the _Destiny_.

"Let's go!" He ordered. "Phabz! Untie us from the dock!"

"Aye, aye, cap'n!" Phabrizoe saluted, quickly untying the mooring line.

"Nadia! Trevia! Lower the sail!" Olose got about getting everything under way instantly.

"Right away!" Nadia answered.

"Yessirrrr!" Trevia cried.

"Suse! Ready the cannons! I think we're going to need them." Olose sighed.

"Awww. But I'm tirrrred." Suse sighed. Olose shot her a glance. "Yessir, Captain Meaniepants." She grumbled.

"She's always cranky when we make her stay up late." Nadia sighed to Trevia.

"I'm surprrrrrised I'm not crrrrranky." Trevia replied sarcastically. Olose spun the wheel, and the _Destiny _left the Seblina docks.

"We need full speed!" He exclaimed. "I need the sails at their fullest. Anything that we can afford to lose, see that it's lost."

"I could of stayed on the dock." Grumbled Suse. "That would have made things lighterrrrr."

"Stop moaning." Sighed Olose. The crew got about quickly throwing everything they didn't need overboard while Suse (who had managed to enlist Trevia's help) prepared the cannons.

The _Justifier _crashed through the waters. One of the young elvaan lieutenants ran across the deck to Nartak.

"Sir! Sir! We have a ship incoming!" He cried.  
"What?" Nartak snapped. The Cardinal looked out over the edge of the ship, seeing a tiny vessel pursuing.

"It is only small, Commander." The Cardinal said dismissively. "Blast it from the ocean!"

The _Destiny _splashed through the waves, closing in on the _Justifier_.

"Thar she blows!" Cried Olose. "Those cannons ready?"

"Yes, Cap'n!" Trevia cried from below decks.

"Sir! She's turning to engage us!" Phabrizoe yelled. "You seen the cannons on that thing! If they broadside us, we're goners!"

"It's under control." Olose answered. "We're a small target. If we keep our bow facing them, they'll struggle to hit us."

"But sir, are you sure you can avoid a volley from those cannons?" Nadia asked.

"No, but there's only one way to find out." Olose answered. "Trevia! Nadia! Your on cannon duty! Suse, help Nadia!" Nadia ran below decks to join with Trevia, Suse being there to help Nadia reload the cannons, which was rather difficult with her one arm.

The Cardinal narrowed his eyes, focusing on the approaching enemy.

"They've readied their cannons!" The lieutenant yelled.

"Bring us around." The Cardinal ordered. Nartak spun the wheel, and the _Justifier _began to turn.

Olose spun the wheel on the _Destiny, _turning much tighter than the _Justifier_, manoeuvring so that _Destiny _was only exposed to the stern of the ship.

Nartak frowned.

"They're too fast." He stated. "They're behind us."

"Well then, turn us!" Snapped the Cardinal.

"I'll do my best." Sighed Nartak.

Olose turned the _Destiny _away from the _Justifier _as it turned, avoiding its mighty cannons by manoeuvring to stay near the stern.

"Right." Olose decided. "I'm bringing us in on their stern. Get ready to fire!"

"Aye, aye, Captain!" Nadia yelled. Olose turned the _Destiny _again, and it began to head straight for the _Justifier's _stern, which couldn't turn in a tight enough circle to keep up with the speedy _Destiny_.

"FIRE!" Olose screamed.

The twin cannons of the _Destiny _blasted, and the cannonballs slammed into the back of the _Justifier, _shattering the captain's quarters (which, of course, belonged to the Cardinal).

"We're hit!" Somebody screamed.

"How _dare _they shoot at me?" The Cardinal growled.

"They're turning away to reload their cannons." Nartak figured. "This is our chance! Bring us around!" He watched as the _Destiny _turned away, and managed to turn the mighty _Justifier _into range to attack.

"OPEN FIRE!" Screamed the Cardinal.

The mighty cannons were unleashed, shots flying through the air, closing in on the _Destiny_.

"BRACE YOURSELVES!" Olose yelled as the cannons splashed down around the retreating ship. Since only the stern was exposed, due to the nature of Olose's retreat, the _Destiny _was a small target, but it still took the hits. A cannonball slammed down on the deck, exploding and sending shards of wood flying everywhere. Another hit the side, causing a gigantic hole to erupt and shaking the ship viciously. "Dammit!" Olose growled. "They're using explosive cannonballs! Damage report!"

"Sir!" Nadia yelled from below. "We've lost the starboard cannons! We're taking on water! Trevia's hurt, badly."

"This isn't bad!" Olose heard Trevia protest.

"You'rrrre bleeding!" Suse exclaimed in horror.

"Ready the port cannons!" Olose ordered. "I'm bringing us about! Now's our chance. They can't reload that many cannons quickly. We're going to broadside them!"

The _Destiny _pulled itself around, twisting. The _Justifier _tried to pull away, but the _Destiny _was too fast, coming along side the _Justifier_.

"Fire whatever we have loaded!" The Cardinal cried.

"Yessir!" Nartak nodded. "FIRE!"

Olose watched as the cannons on the _Justifier _roared into life.

"FIRE!" He cried. The _Destiny _blasted its own cannons, hitting the _Justfier _and sending wood flying everywhere. The _Justifier _fired three cannons of its own, all that were loaded, and one slammed into the bow of the _Destiny_, exploding.

"Sir!" Nadia screamed, running up on deck. "We have severe flooding below!" Olose watched as the _Justifier _began to turn away.

"We can't keep this up." Phabrizoe sighed.

"I'm scarrrrred!" Sobbed Suse. Olose's gaze became steely.

"We can't beat them in naval combat." He decided. "But perhaps physical-"

"Captain?" Trevia asked, holding a rag to her bleeding forehead.

"All hands! Brace yourselves!" He ordered. "Phabrizoe! Ready the sails! Give me ramming speed!"

"Ramming speed?" He gasped.  
"I'm bringing us about!" Olose realised this was it. The end of the _Destiny_. The damage was too severe, the vessel would never take another hit, and ramming the elvaan warship would destroy it. He sighed. He wasn't going to let the Cardinal beat him. Even if it cost his ship, he would catch the evil tyrant and end his villainy. He would save Princess Astra. "Brace yourselves!" He cried for a second time.

Nartak watched as the _Destiny _turned inwards towards the _Justifier._

"What are they doing?" The Cardinal asked.

"I don't know. They can't get into position to fire from there-" Nartak paused as he realised what was going to happen. "FIRE!" He screamed. "SHOOT! DESTROY THEM BEFORE THEY HIT US!"

The _Justifier _unleashed its mighty cannons, ripping all around the _Destiny, _exploding against the decks and sending shards of it flying. Olose stood at the wheel, undeterred, as his ship burnt around him. His gaze became focused on the _Justifier_. The _Destiny _did not slow down. It kept going, despite the incredible damage. As if in one final testimony to its mighty strength, the _Destiny _did not falter. Fires engulfed its hull, water gushed into its hold, the cabins collapsed, but it kept going. It wasn't going to die without a fight.

Nartak's eyes went wide.

"It's still coming! Brace yourselves! It's a collision!" The _Destiny _smashed into the side of the _Justifier, _ripping through its hull and knocking everybody on board off of their feet. The _Destiny's _front hull buckled under the pressure, crumpling. The _Justifier _shook, still afloat, able to take the damage, but badly limping. Onto the deck suddenly burst five heroes, running up, swords drawn, as they began to engage the elvaan crew. "We're being boarded!" Nartak yelled. "Your eminence! Get below decks!" The Cardinal was already possessed by fury. He had already spotted _him_.

"Sampson!" He growled, drawing a sword and running towards him.

The _Destiny _began to disappear beneath the waves in the background, and the _Justifier _began to tilt, the mighty hole the _Destiny _had caused making it lose its stability. Olose managed to get to the Cardinal, and the two fought.

"Brave of you boy, but your ship is lost, and you're crew outnumbered." The Cardinal spat. Olose swung down in a strike, and the Cardinal blocked it, before he slashed to the side.

"You're holding my friend prisoner!" Olose spat. "Where is she?"

"Does it matter?" The Cardinal laughed. "Soon she'll be dead. And you with her." He threw his sword down, and drew a silver blade. "I've been looking forward to this. You know, that weak fool Richard was reluctant to order the final destruction of the werewolves. It was me, and the Temple Knights who had to do it. And at last, we shall succeed! At last your evil bloodline will end."

"You're the only evil one here, Treville!" Olose reminded him. The Cardinal swung in with his silver blade, and Olose blocked it. The Cardinal brought it about in a thrust, and drove Olose back. Olose scrambled up the steps onto the bridge of the _Justifier_. The Cardinal chased him, swinging his blade. Olose jumped over it, landing on the banister of the steps, and sliding down it. He landed in a front roll and turned around. The Cardinal turned about, running down the steps after him. Olose flipped up a dropped broom from the ground with his foot (obviously someone had been cleaning the deck before the battle began) and caught it in one hand, swinging it around and hitting the Cardinal in the face. The Cardinal stumbled back, but rose his sword in defiance. Olose swung his own blade in and cut off the Cardinal's hand, causing the silver blade to fly into the water. The Cardinal screamed in agony, dropping to his knees. Olose held a sword to his neck.

"Do it then, boy." The Cardinal growled. "Kill me. A public figure. A powerful religious man. Murder me. A servant of Altana. I just tried to make San d'Oria strong. I know you will. You're a monster. You'll give in to your monstrous ways and strike me down." He laughed, blood trickling from his mouth. Olose gripped the sword tightly.  
"You know what?" His face began to warp into a grin. "You're right. I will." The Cardinal's eyes went wide with horror mere moments before Olose cut off his head. The fighting had stopped, and both crews were looking at him in shock. "What?" He asked innocently. "He was trying to make me regret killing him. This man stole a girl's life. He planned to poison an entire population. I was pretty justified." He paused, then realised that he still just had a crew of five versus the population of the elvaan warship. "Where's Astra?" He snapped.

"Below decks." Nartak said calmly. Olose went to walk down there. "We can still stop you, you know."

"Tell me." Olose turned. "The Cardinal is dead. You are all servants of San d'Oria. Since you cannot serve the Cardinal anymore, you must serve the crown. And I believe _Princess _Astra is a member of that crown." He grinned. "Surrender, and I'll tell the King to be lenient." The crew sheathed their swords. Olose let out a sigh of relief, as did the whole _Destiny _crew.

It was a week later, back in San d'Oria, when everything was slowly returning to normal. The population still felt shaken up, the nation was considerably weakened after the loss of the war, but with the king back on the throne, they felt that things might improve. Olose had agreed to stay there with Arcadia after she had said that she would help train Astra in the ways of being a member of high society, like she must learn now. The King had extended his gratitude to Olose, but he had turned down the reward, feeling a little downbeat after the destruction of the _Destiny_. But it was a week after the events that the true reward came.

Arcadia walked into the room where Olose was slumped. She laughed. He had been doodling on a bit of paper. A picture of a tiny one sailed ship. The whole crew had been noticeably downbeat since they had lost their ship.

"Hi." She said softly. Olose turned around, smiling, never one to let his pain manifest itself.

"Hi." He said, almost playfully.

"Want to come for a walk?" She asked. Olose got up and took her hand.

"Any time." He smiled.

The two walked through San d'Oria, with Arcadia's soft hand constantly around Olose's own.

"Nice city, isn't it." She said casually. "Beautiful. The elvaans really know their stuff."

"Yeah." Olose answered, clearly distracted. They were approaching the San d'Orian docks, and the sea breeze brought back too many memories.

"Olose!" Came a cheerful cry. Astra ran over in a long flowing white gown, and ordained with so much jewellery and make-up Olose quickly came to the decision that Arcadia was a bad influence. "Urm, I mean. Mr Sampson." She curtseyed formally as per her instructions from Arcadia, before giggling, knowing she didn't have to bother around Olose. "C'mon." She said happily, skipping away. Olose followed her, baffled. Astra loved the new energy she had, and seemed to run or skip everywhere.

Arcadia and Olose followed her for a moment, before Olose froze, coming to a massive assembly of elvaan Royal Guards and Temple Knights, as well as the _Destiny _crew. King Richard stood at the front of them all, Dartian and Santia flanking him. Tarrak stood just behind him.

"Olose Sampson." He stated, drawing a sword.

"He's not going to cut my head off, is he?" Olose asked Arcadia nervously. Astra took up her position beside the king.

"You're service to San d'Oria is beyond measurement. You have saved my daughter from her horrific illness, saved the crown, stopped an evil tyrant from poisoning the whole population, and most importantly, won my respect." The King paused. "I trust I can always depend upon you?"

"I shall always serve the forces I deem right." Olose answered.

"An honest answer." The King decided. "And worthy to serve San d'Oria." Olose paused.

"I think you're supposed to drop to one knee." Arcadia whispered in Olose's ear. Olose nodded, and did so. The King swung the sword from one of Olose's shoulders to the other.

"I dub thee, Sir Olose Sampson." He said. Olose smiled as the crowd clapped. "And I present to you, Sir knight, your prize." He stepped back, and Olose saw the _Justifier_, fully repaired, standing proudly. "Would you do the honours?" The King held out a bottle on a string to Olose. Olose swung it and it shattered against the new name written upon the mighty ship.

The name that read _Destiny II._

**Author's Note: Whew. End of that chapter. A bit longer too. Urm, I did a bad thing. I killed my favourite character. No, not the Cardinal! The _Destiny! _But I figured it's destruction led to the nice ending of this chapter, and the whole plot arc. I really liked this chapter, I thought it had humour, had the crew return, and a nice final battle, and even a bit of tragedy with the loss of the ship. And, as you know, its rare for me to like my own writing. But yes, I thought this plot arc in general came off rather well. I'm not sure what happens next. I have the next chapter planned out which is something special, but after that, who knows? I could just end it with that chapter, but I don't really want to. Otherwise, I might try and get some inspiration together for a final plotline that can end the story.**

**If anybody cares, this chapter at least explains Olose's closeness to the elvaan nation in the FFXI Chronicles, where the King seems to know him and his powers well. All stemmed from here, you see? Anyway, that's pretty much all I have to say. I really loved this chapter, and actually overall really liked this plot arc, even if it was a bit of a rip off. But it's over now. I have a plot left with Astra and the elvaan characters to revisit, which means I might do one separate plot line, then return to San d'Oria for a plot line, then do the finale. But that depends on what I can think up for the next plot arc! Still drawing blanks there!**


	42. Marriage

**Author's Note: Okay, I realise this chapter is pretty obvious, from the title, what happens. So I put an original spin on things. Also makes it easier to write, since not much really happens. Also has a few cameos from the FFXI Chronicles, so if you haven't read it, don't be confused, it should be understandable enough. They just serve as people for Olose to interact with as he reflects on his past.**

**Oh, and an alternative title for this chapter was "The Answer To Life, The Universe, And Everything". Hopefully somebody gets that.**

**CHAPTER 42**

**MARRIAGE**

It was almost six centuries after that battle at sea, when Olose had defeated the Cardinal, saved San d'Oria, and been knighted. He was stood looking out across the peaceful waters of Kazham, the moonlight sparkling on the sea. The airship that regularly flew in had just departed, and he smirked. He remembered a time when the concept of flying a ship through the sky was ludicrous. A time when all you needed to be a captain was a ship and a sea to sail it on.

His latest ship floated not far away. It wasn't really his, but he liked to think of it as such since he spent the most time piloting it. A little black airship, currently sat on the ocean. It reminded him of the _Destiny _in many ways, small, fast, and with a tendency to shake, barely working right. Perhaps that's why he liked it. He had never found a ship to replace the _Destiny_, not in six hundred years. Well, it wasn't quite six hundred years, but it was close enough. He found it easier to round it up to the nearest century, or at least the closest fifty years. Ships now were little more than modes of transport to him. The _Destiny _had been a home, a person, and a friend.

He laughed. He rarely got caught up in the past. Very rarely. When you're immortal, it doesn't afford to dwell on a past life that has long since passed you by. He blamed the moon, even in its half full state, the reflection on the water made him feel oddly reflective to his own memories.

He smirked a little as he picked up her scent and turned around, seeing her in the distance. She was walking along with that irritatingly innocent smile of hers splattered across her face. Vivli. Perhaps the most fitting person in the world to the be described by the word 'vulnerable'. She was a young mithra, unusually short and very lightly built, a white mage in profession, and somebody who hated being violent in any form. This meant she was, for the most part, utterly defenceless against everything. To top it off, she was also scared of pretty much everything.

Yet there was something undeniably attractive about her. Perhaps it was the fact that she was so vulnerable and weak, and needed protection. Of course, she had that protection now, and it wasn't from Olose.

"Go on then." He said as she approached. "What're you smiling about?"

"Oh nothing." She sighed dreamily, her odd accent making him smile. She hadn't been risen in Kazham, and had been given speech training to quell the mithran accent. "Just spent the day with Zin." Zinkata, her boyfriend and fellow adventurer. She belonged to a group of four adventurers, heroes more accurately, even if they were a very unlikely band. They'd saved the world more than once, and Olose had helped out enough times. He had actually met them when they wanted to charter a ship, but that was another story. "Oh, he makes me so happy." She said to herself, and Olose rolled his eyes. This is what he had meant when he had thought 'irritatingly innocent'. She didn't seem to appreciate that it would have to end. Everything always did. And the more attached you were, the more it hurt like hell.

"So where is he now?" Olose asked, knowing that there were always amusing stories in asking questions like that. Sure enough Vivli blushed and looked to the floor.

"Urm. We were eating at this restaurant." She said. "It was really nice. B-but then-" She paused and shuddered. "This really big spider climbed up on the table!" Olose burst out laughing. "It was really big! And all hairy! I jumped up, and knocked the table over, I was so scared." Olose was now in tears of laughter, unable to stop himself. Vivli's fear of spider's could be extremely comical. "It was scary!" She said angrily. "Anyway, Zin was really kind and said he'd clear up the mess. I tried to help, but was all scared because I knew the spider was still around, so he said I could go for a walk while he cleaned up. He's so sweet." She looked up at the moon, hands behind her back, and rocking on the balls of her feet. Her tail swished about crazily. "It's so good to be in love." She sighed again. "Were you ever in love?" She suddenly shot to Olose, which caught him slightly off guard.

"Of course I was." He laughed. "I'm six hundred and sixteen years old. A fairly boring six centuries if I hadn't been in love."

"Who was she?" Vivli asked, wrapping her own arms around herself, almost as if she had gone without a hug for so long from Zinkata she had to give herself one. Olose laughed.

"Viv. Six hundred years is a long time, there's been more than one." _You were one of them_ he added silently. For a while, she had felt the same way, but there was an incident. Again, another story for another time.

"Oh." Vivli seemed a little upset, like her romantic image of everybody having one ideal partner had been shattered. "Well, tell me about one." She asked. "You never tell me about your past."

"Isn't really good for me to dwell on it." He pointed out. Vivli's bright blue eyes went wide as she realised what he meant. He was immortal. They were not. Everybody he knew must be dead.

"Oh! I'm sorry." She said quickly. Olose laughed.

"No, it's alright." He paused. "I suppose I can tell you. Back before I was used to be immortal, my first lifetime, really. I guess that's what you could call it. There was my first love." He paused, remembering Arcadia's face. An image burnt in his mind. There wasn't a picture or a painting in the world of her, but he could never forget how she looked. "Her name was Arcadia." He explained.

"Arcadia?" Vivli repeated. "Nice name." She seemed to be dancing around with happiness, which irritated Olose no end. He knew she was listening, but her romantic mood was getting sickening.

"Yeah. Went on a lot of adventures together too, although she wasn't really suited to them. She was a fairly high up Lady, you see, daughter of a powerful Lord. I was just her bodyguard. But once I became a knight, and we got married-"

"You were married?" Vivli exclaimed, stopping her dreamy dance.

"Yeah." Olose laughed.

"What was it like?" Vivli asked quickly, her mind already filling with romantic images.

"What? The marriage?" Olose asked. He smirked. He knew she'd like this story. "Like you wouldn't believe. I always remember that day. We woke up in the morning and-"

"No. Oh no. You can't start like that. I want to hear how you proposed." Vivli said with a cheeky smile.

"Urm." Olose nervously scratched behind his head. "It wasn't actually me who proposed." He confessed with a laugh.

"It wasn't?" Vivli sounded a little surprised, but that's only because she had imagined Olose coming up with some incredibly romantic way of expressing his love.

"No." He laughed. "It was just after an-" He paused. "-an incident in San d'Oria. Arcadia was staying there to help out a friend, Astra."

"Astra? Pretty name. Was she named after that famous elvaan queen?" Vivli asked, remembering the history her teachers had forced her to study at the monastery where she was raised. Olose chuckled.

"She _was _that famous elvaan queen." He laughed.

"You knew Queen Astra?" Vivli gasped.

"Well, she was only a princess at the time." Olose shrugged.

"What was she like?" Vivli asked in awe.

"She was extremely naïve, but very kind and caring. You remind me of her, actually." He told her.

"Hey! I am not naïve!" Vivli protested. Olose didn't have to answer. He just burst out laughing. Vivli folded her arms, looking like she was sulking. _Actually, maybe she reminds me of Suse _Olose mentally said to himself.

"Now, do you want to hear this story or not?" Vivli nodded like a scolded child. "It was actually Astra, who asked Arcadia why we weren't married. Of course, the true reason was that I was just a lowly bodyguard, and a bit of a pirate at that, and she was a Lady, a woman with a title, so us marrying was pretty much out of the question. But then she realised that I had just been knighted by the elvaan king, meaning that we could-"

"You were knighted by the king?" Vivli cried. Olose sighed.

"No. I just said it so that you could interrupt me again." He grumbled sarcastically.

"Sorry." Vivli looked to the floor. "It's just all very odd."

"I know. But if you keep interrupting me I'll have to insist you call me 'Sir Olose Sampson'." Olose laughed. "So anyway, once Astra had asked that, we realised there was no reason we weren't married. So there was no proposal, no questions, no nothing." He could see disappointment etched on Vivli's face, so he decided to make it a bit better for her. "You see, we loved each other so much, we didn't need to ask. There was no question about it, of course we were going to get married. It was just a matter of fact." Vivli's face returned to a smile upon hearing this, and she began dancing around again.

She stopped as she noticed Olose was getting slightly annoyed.

"Sorry." She said. "I'm just really happy."

"I know." He laughed.

"Was it like it is with me and Zin? Like how I feel really safe whenever he wraps his arms around me, like nothing can penetrate them and harm me as long as he holds me?" She wrapped her arms around herself as she talked, almost in a love sick daze. Olose laughed.

"Urm, Viv, I'm a man. I'm also a werewolf. I'm fairly certainly the 'feeling safe in somebody's strong arms' thing isn't for me." He pointed out.

"Apparently you're a man who's insecure in his masculinity." Vivli grumbled.

"Eh?" Olose asked, not quite hearing her.

"Nothing!" She beamed. "So, what was the actual marriage like?" She asked. Olose looked down at her, and then shut his eyes, trying to remember.

"It was incredible. I remember waking up, and just the _feel _of the day felt right. The air was warm, and the sky wasn't even blue, it was this spectacular reddish pink colour. The flowers were blooming all around. It was like Altana herself went out of her way to make sure everything was right." He smirked. He wondered if he was remembering it right, or whether it was just a romantic picture his mind had painted over the centuries. "I remember going to get dressed. My friends had hidden my brown jacket, telling me I wasn't allowed to wear it on my wedding day. So I slipped into a tux and we all got prepared. Met my best man too, a little tarutaru guy."

"What did Arcadia look like?" Vivli asked. "Was her dress really pretty?" _Typical_, Olose thought to himself.

"Come on, you gonna let me tell this story or not?" He asked.

"Oh, alright." She sighed.

"He had the ring, which wasn't the easiest thing in the world to pick. We're talking about Arcadia here, she may have been one of the kindest, sweetest people I ever knew, but she could be very vain. She had an unbelievable heap of jewellery, so finding a special ring was really hard."

"So what did you get her in the end?" Vivli asked, fiddling with a small ring she was wearing on her finger as they talked.

"Princess Astra helped me find one. We put this special rock in it. One that glowed with this soft white light at all times, a magical enchantment." He smiled. "I always remember how that glow reflected off her eyes, it made them sparkle." He found himself with the same love induced smile on his face that Vivli had, which he quickly snapped out of.

"I want one!" She cried in sarcasm. "Make being in the dark much easier." Olose laughed again. He seemed to be doing a lot of that. Laughing made reflection on the past much easier.

"So, we took the ring and went to the ceremony. Held it in the Chateau d'Oraguille thanks to the king." He explained.

"You got married in the elvaan chateau?" She exclaimed in awe.

"Yep." Olose smiled. "No expense was spared. Of course, when you're getting married to a fantastically rich woman, that's not actually that special. To be honest, it wasn't as big as it sounds. Just our closest friends, and Arcadia's family. It being a Knight marrying a Lady, plenty of people wanted to be there, but we insisted it was kept down to just our friends, and, of course, the elvaans responsible for the ceremony."

"Just you and your love." Vivli said dreamily. He sighed. He wondered if he pushed Vivli in the water it would snap her out of her loved up trance.

"I remember just how painful it was, going through the whole day without seeing her. And then there she was, walking down the aisle. She looked even more beautiful than she normally did, and that's saying something! This long dress flowing behind her, and this little white veil covering her face, meaning I could just see her bright red lips and sparkling eyes through it. She got closer and closer, and I was almost overpowered by her presence, I just remember standing there praying that the ceremony was over soon so that I could kiss her and hold her in my arms. Think she was the same, because as soon as we could, we just leapt at each other as if we were two coiled springs, just waiting to jump." Olose paused. He wasn't very good with metaphors, he decided.

"You're not very good with metaphors." Apparently, so had Vivli. Olose fell silent. "Well?" Vivli asked.

"Well, what?" Olose responded.

"What happened next?" She prompted.

"The usual wedding stuff. Lots of food, big speeches proclaiming our love, and how happy everybody was for us. The usual stuff." He shrugged.

"Oh, come on." Vivli moaned. "It can't have just been boring like that!"

"Well, I can't quite remember the speech, it was a long time ago, but it was very romantic. You know, lots of nice flowery similes and things like that." He paused. "And then there was the evening."

"What happened in the evening?" Vivli asked, as if to reinforce Olose's point about naivety from a few minutes ago.

"What do you _think _happened?" Olose asked with a grin.

"Oh." She said. "_Oh_!" She repeated as she actually realised. Olose rolled his eyes. "Okay, I didn't need to know that!" She cried, purely because she thought it was an appropriate thing to say.

"And there you go. My marriage." Olose said plainly. "Not really that interesting."

"It sounds _so _romantic." She was already back in her dreamlike daze, and Olose grumbled to himself. "So, what other stories can you tell me?" She suddenly asked.

"Other stories? Hm." Olose paused. This was the exact reason he didn't like talking about his past. He'd always end up having to recall past events, and friends long dead. "Well, there's an interesting story about the first time I came here." He decided.

"First time you visited Kazham?" Vivli confirmed.

"Yeah. A few months after we had gotten married." He explained.

"Ah. There you are!" Came a booming voice. Olose turned around with a chuckle as a mighty galka stomped his way over. "C'mon, shortie."

"Hey! I'm not short!" Vivli snapped to the galka, who just turned around and peered down at her. "Well, okay, so I am, but that's not the point."

"Hey Olose." The galka said casually, ignoring Vivli.

"Hey Bootus." Olose waved back.

"Now, get a move on!" Bootus snapped. "Zin is waiting for you."

"He is?" She cried, her eyes lighting up. Bootus and Olose rolled their eyes simultaneously.

"Yeah, now move it, or I'll drag you." Bootus threatened. Vivli quickly tucked her tail behind her back, protecting it from being used to drag her.

"Well Viv, I'll see you later." Olose waved. "I'll tell ya that story sometime too."  
"Yeah, maybe he can read you a bedtime story." Bootus mocked.

"Shut up!" Vivli moaned.

The two wondered off bickering, and Olose turned back to the sea. He thought back to the first time he had visited Kazham. It was a normal day, when Arcadia came over and said she had a letter addressed to Trevia…

**Author's Note: Right, now that you've read that, I want to point out that the story isn't going to stay in this timeline, and by the next update, everything will be back to normal. I wanted an original way of doing the marriage.**

**I also realise Vivli is annoying in this chapter. Hell, I figured if I was continuing the romance from the FFXI Chronicles 3, it would have to be annoying, since it pissed everybody off in that. I also take this opportunity to remind everyone Vivli is a _character_. I do not behave like that!**

**Although I did read a story the other day which makes me consider being afraid of spiders. Apparently a woman got really bad ear ache, and severe headaches, and kept hearing scratching. Apparently a spider had buried its way inside her ear, eaten her eardrum and was living in her skull. 'Ew', I believe would be the word. Being afraid of spiders suddenly seems very clever.**

**Anyway, I hope this read alright, since it was my attempt to do something new (or at least handle it differently). That final paragraph should lead into the new storyline, which was nicely suggested by TheFrogKiller, which is very useful. Thanks! **

**Although I can't guarantee I'll update tomorrow. I heard a rumour I was going to end up going camping with a group of my friends. If that happens, I won't be here to update!**

**And I'm sorry for all the author's notes! I've really gotta stop…**


	43. Mail

**Author's Note: Glad to see people didn't mind the last chapter! I was expecting people to shout at me for using characters that don't belong in this story, and revisiting the worse thing I've ever written with the romance. So I'm glad that was avoided.**

**  
The spider story? As far as I know, it's true (scary, huh?). Read it in a student magazine under amazing stories, and they said they didn't know if it was actually true, but seemed to think it was. Apparently it spun webs inside her skull cavity and everything. She kept hearing a scratching she thought was from a migraine but was actually from it crawling around. It even left egg sacs they had to remove.**

**Urm. I'm gonna stop typing about that now. I've got a bit of a headache right now and I'm not gonna start thinking about my skull with a spider in! I'm already feeling a bit sick just from typing that! I mean, it's not squeamish, it's damn right logical to be scared of a spider being _inside _your head! (And no, I haven't heard of chiggers, but if I hear somebody mention them being around, I'm gonna run in the opposite direction).**

**Ahem. Onto other things. Next storyline starts, which I've had some help with from TheFrogKiller, so the idea for this storyline goes to him. I've tried to mix drama and humour, which is a bit odd here, but I wanted to re-establish the comedy of the _Destiny_ crew and had to do some serious drama. Bit more I wanna say about that, but I'll say it afterwards. (Sorry, means there are two author's notes again!)**

**Oh, and sorry this is up later than usual. Had a few events sprung on me today I didn't know I'd have to do (no camping though luckily!).**

**CHAPTER 43**

**MAIL**

Olose strode into the little bar, specifically built for the crew, paid for by Arcadia, as part of the house she had built for her bodyguards, waving a piece of paper around.

"Mail call!" He announced.

"Since when did we have a mail call?" Nadia asked, taking a break from her busy act of drinking.

"Since we received mail." Olose rolled his eyes like it was obvious. "Trevs, this one's for you!"  
"Don't call me that." She said, walking over from the table where her and Suse were playing cards (not gambling for money of course, Olose wouldn't let them be a bad influence on Suse like that). "Therrrre's a clear 'ia' bit on the end of my name." She took the letter. "See?" She pointed to her name on the letter.

"Yeah, yeah." Olose sighed.

"That it?" Nadia asked casually.

"Well, yeah." Olose answered.

"Well, why didn't you just say 'Trevia got a letter' instead of 'mail call' then?" Nadia questioned.

"Sounded better." Olose shrugged. Trevia read the letter, and for a moment every part of her tensed up, before she threw the letter in the nearest bin and sat down, back to play cards. Olose could smell the change in her. Something was wrong. Everybody looked at her oddly.

"What was it?" Suse asked, blinking in confusion.

"Just some junk." She sighed.

"Junk?" Nadia questioned.

"Yeah." Trevia answered. "Unless you're interested in joining a mail order book club." She added with a particularly Olose-like grin. Nadia smirked.

"You mean you came in here and caused all that attention for nothing?" She asked Olose.

"Actually, _there _was a letter for you." He grinned sinisterly. "From your mother. Shall I hand it to you here?"

"No!" Nadia said quickly, getting up and running out. Olose burst out laughing. Trevia blinked.

"What was that about?" She asked. Olose looked at her curiously for a moment. Something was clearly bothering her, and she was trying to get it off of her mind.

"Oh, her mother likes to send her things. You know, help out. This time it was a knitted scarf." He laughed. "I think she may be embarrassed." He added, looking at the door. Trevia laughed, along with Suse. Phabrizoe smirked, who had been up until that point distracted by his drink.

"Remind me to mock her for that." He chipped in.

"Will do!" Olose saluted, turning and leaving.

Later that evening Trevia was sprawled on her bed in her room, looking at the ceiling. She sighed, and rolled over, looking out the window. It was cold, especially cold compared to the climate she had grown up in. She shivered, considering wrapping the blanket she had around herself. She got up first, doing her usual check to make sure nobody was around to see her wrapped up in it. She had an image to maintain after all, you can't be a respected assassin wrapped up in a blanket. In fact, she had noticed a considerable slump in her ways, she hadn't actually _assassinated _anybody in a long time. And she had been playing cards, drinking, generally socialising with her friends. That wasn't something she used to do either. She sighed. It was clearly Olose's fault.

A knock came on the door, and she was quickly thankful she had bothered to check the area. She quickly threw the blanket down the side of the bed and opened the door.

"Hi." Olose waved.

"Urm, hello." She said, a little confused. Olose never called on her late at night ,unless they had a job to do. "What's up?" She asked.

"Why'd ya throw the letter away?" Olose shot.

"Urm, it was just junk." She answered, trying her best to sound confused. Olose just stared at her. "Well, it may as well have been."

"It's a letter from your parents." He said bluntly. He held up the screwed up letter. "You should have at least torn it or something."

"I don't have any parrrrrents." She replied. "They'rrrrrre dead as far as I'm concerrrrrned."

"What? Why?" Olose asked.

"They cared more about me marrying then they did about my will. So I packed up and left." Trevia answered simply.

"Urm, care to explain?" Olose questioned.

"You've read the letter. You know." She told him. Olose paused.

"Yeah. So I read. They want you to return to Kazham and take your husband." He told her. "And I'm no fool. I've read about Kazham. I know that once you leave Kazham, you're an exile. They don't just _invite _you back. Something special must be going on here. What is it?" She paused, and sat down on her bed, beginning to wish she was wrapped in her blanket.

"Urm, the way marriage worrrrrks in Kazham is a bit odd." She explained. "Because male mithra are in such shorrrrrt supply, it's a great honour to be selected for marriage. Or at least it's _supposed _ to be."

"What does that mean?" Olose asked, leaning against the wall and folding his arms.

"Well, I got picked. In Kazham it's as simple as that. You get picked, your supposed to be honoured and take your husband." She paused. "I think it's barrrrbarrrric. Taking away yourrrr rrrrrights like that. My family were shocked when I said no. They disowned me, and claimed I had dishonoured their whole line. I just picked up and left. I was only young at the time. Twelve. A few months later, and I was doing my first assassination jobs."

"At _twelve_?" Olose exclaimed.

"Well, yeah." She answered, before pausing. "Dammit! I've never told anybody this beforrrre. What is it about you?"

"I'm just great." Olose laughed sarcastically. "So, what now?"

"What do you mean? I can just ignorrrre it." She shrugged.

"But do you want too?" Olose asked.

"Yes." She answered plainly. Olose rolled his eyes.

"Maybe if you go back and talk to them you can get out of this." Olose suggested.

"Do you rrrrrreally think they'll listen?" She asked.

"Well, put it this way, this guy must still want to marry you, or else he'd of chosen someone else. He must care a lot for you." Olose suggested.

"He only knew me when I was young." She pointed out.

"Well, whatever the reason, he still cares. You can exploit that. Make him realise it's best for you to go, and if he cares enough to track you down, he'll leave you alone and you won't need to worry about it." Olose paused. "Besides, I never got a proper honeymoon with Arcadia, and Kazham sounds like a lovely place."

"It's a xenophobic oppressive village in the dangerrrrrous jungle." Trevia stated bluntly.

"Yeah, but I'm a werewolf, everybody hates me, so what difference does it make?" Olose paused as Trevia rolled her eyes. "And look on the bright side, if anything goes wrong, who can stop us from escaping?"

"The Kazham authorities are powerrrrrful." Trevia told him. "Do not take the mithran warrrrrriorrrrrs for fools."

"Okay, even if things got bad, need I remind you I'm more than slightly immortal." He said with a cocky laugh. "And let's admit it, you're no pushover yourself." Trevia smiled slightly.

"I would think not. I went toe to toe with you, didn't I?" She gave another Olose-style grin.

"I went easy!" Olose protested. "Urm. Easyish." He corrected as Trevia shot him an icy stare. It didn't fate. "Urm, normal?" It persisted. "Urm, I was trying really hard?  
"That's morrrre like it." She smirked. "Okay. We'll go. But only so that I can get out of it and get it off of my mind. If you even trrrry to make me get involved then I'll-" She stopped, expecting Olose to interrupt her. He didn't. "Well, I'm not entirrrrrely surrrre what I'll do yet, but I'll think of something!" Olose laughed. That sounded like the kind of threat he would make.

It was the following day that the mighty _Destiny II _crashed through the waters, the waves breaking helplessly, being trampled by its mighty hull. The golden metal that wrapped around the hull gleamed brightly, protecting the multiple rows of cannons that lined the ship. The flags billowed proudly, all evidence of the red of the Cardinal that had ordained them eliminated, replaced by clear white sails, and an impressive looking black flag with the skull of a wolf, and two crossed bones upon it (the stitch work of Suse, surprisingly). And on deck, the mighty vessel's captain moaned.

"It's like driving a really large slug!" He whined. "Except, worse."

"It's a fine ship, Captain." Phabrizoe pointed out.

"But it's so slow. And big. And unresponsive." He complained with all the skill of a young toddler. "I mean, all we've gained is extra room we don't really need, and rows of cannons we never use. And to top it off, we can barely keep it sailing with just the five of us. We have to work around the clock to keep it going. It's useless!"

"It's a mighty warship Captain." Phabrizoe said, slightly amused.

"Yeah, but it ain't no _Destiny_." Olose replied, throwing the rules of grammar out of the window.

"Yes it is!" Beamed Suse. "It says so on the side!" Olose laughed.

"Yeah, I meant metaphorically." He told her. "It's not like the old _Destiny_. It's too clean. Too strong. Too perfect."

"Too elvaan?" Nadia suggested.

"Not exactly." Olose grumbled. "I'm just saying this ship has none of the charm, none of the speed, nothing that made our old ship our old ship. I just don't like it!"

"I love this ship!" Arcadia declared, walking up on deck, prompting a few giggles from among the crew due to her timing. "It is so much more luxurious than that old vessel you had. I can sleep in comfort without worrying about waking up with my feet wet."

"That only happened once!" Olose snapped. "Urr, I mean, the _Destiny _was a perfectly reliable ship." Arcadia looked at him in shock.

"You mean you woke up while it was sinking once?" She spluttered, originally having been making a joke, and quite worried to discover that the actual ship had encountered that problem.

"Well, not exactly." Olose confessed.

"Suse went to wake him up, but fell over and spilled her drink over him." Nadia explained.

"It was an accident!" Suse cried. "The ship rocked funny."

"See? This ship does not rock funny." Arcadia said with a smirk.

"Yeah, but it also takes us forever to get anywhere." Olose muttered from the wheel.

"I'm sure if you want the old _Destiny _back, you can swim down and get it, Captain." Phabrizoe said smirking, prompting the crew to laugh.

Trevia was below decks, shut in her quarters. The larger ship and the smallness of the crew meant that each crew member now had their own place to stay in, which was nice for the privacy. She was staring at the ceiling and in deep thought. She had a horribly feeling she had made a mistake. She couldn't shake the thought that as soon as she ended up in Kazham she'd be thrown into shackles and chains. Or worse, a wedding dress.

Her brain was revolted at the thought. _Eugh, _her mind spat. When was the last time she had worn a dress? She tried to remember, but couldn't quite find the memory. Maybe she never had. No, she was sure her parents had dressed her in one. Probably all the time when she was little. Not that she would remember that. She could barely still picture her parent's faces. Forcing herself to forget everything, who she was, who her family was, it was the only way to leave it all behind. And be a killer. She had no emotional attachments, and that made killing easy. She couldn't understand the pain she caused others because she felt nothing. Then he came and messed it all up.

Olose Sampson. Expert interferer. Now she knew people. She had friends. People she cared about. She knew what it was like. She tried to imagine how she would feel if somebody took her friends from her. She remembered looking over Olose's body before it regenerated and that gut wrenching sadness she had felt. She thought she was going to be sick.

Was that a tear? Salty water emerged from one of her eyes and she cursed, quickly mopping it away. She was an assassin! A warrior! She didn't cry. She never cried. But apparently her brain wasn't listening to her screaming thoughts, because she cried harder. She turned over and buried her face against the pillow to try and quell the tears.

Guilt. Fear. Love. All emotions she shouldn't feel. Emotions made people weak. She didn't want them. Why wouldn't they go away? If she had been able to wish away her memories, why couldn't she wish away her emotions? Why wouldn't they go? That burning guilt about all the lives she had taken. That fear of what would happen to her back in Kazham. That love for everybody she had met. She cared so deeply for them that she would do anything. Anything.

She found herself crying harder, and punched the pillow. She shouldn't feel like this! She couldn't! Suse could cry. Arcadia would. Even Nadia had been sad at times about her disability. But not her. She was an assassin! She was a warrior! She was not some pathetic little girl who cried when things got a little too emotional for her.

"Trevs?" Came a gentle voice from the doorway, on the other side of the door. It was Olose. He could clearly tell how she felt. It was that dammed werewolf nose of his.  
"Yes?" She croaked in answer, trying to sound like everything was fine, but failing horribly.

"Urm, I meant Trevia." He corrected. "Pesky 'ia' bit, always evades me." Trevia smirked slightly at Olose's rather lame joke, it helped her feel a little better, laughing. "Urm, we're approaching Kazham." He told her. "I don't expect you to come up on deck, not yet, but I thought I'd tell you."

"Thanks." She sniffed, cursing in her mind how weak she must have sounded.

"We can't take this stupid bulky thing ashore, we'll need to anchor it and take the rowing boats. We've got eight of them now though. That's more than one each! Although, unless you're planning to put on weight, I don't think we'll need that many." Another lame joke, but another laugh. It did make her feel better. "Anyway, come up on deck when you're ready." She heard him leave and sighed on the bed. He was kind, but she hated how he knew her vulnerabilities. It made her feel so weak around him. And she hated that weak feeling. She hated it as much as it was possible to hate something.

She sighed, grabbed her katana, strapped it to her back, flung on her belt of more minor weapons and walked to the door, pausing to wipe the final tears from her eyes. She looked in the battered mirror to make sure it wasn't clear she had been upset. Her eyes were swollen and her cheeks were puffy. Damn. She looked down at the wool covering over the bed and came up with an idea.

She'd just claim she was allergic to wool.

**Author's Note: Urm, I hope nobody thinks I went overboard with Trevia there, making her seem like too much of a weak character, because she's still meant to be the toughest on the crew (other than Olose, who's obviously immortal). I was trying to give her some emotion, but I hope she doesn't sound too much like she's gone soft, I'm trying to develop her character (which I'm clearly not very good at) while keeping her the same type of person. Which I didn't do very well there. But basically, she's still meant to be a really tough warrior, but she's showing emotion this time, which hopefully doesn't look too bad.**

**Another thanks to the TheFrogKiller for the continued help with this plotline!**

**And all my reviewers, of course!**


	44. Kazham

**Author's Note: This chapter doesn't feel right. I found it quite hard to write, and I think the characters are a bit off. Sorry about that. It's just another of a bit of a crap chapter 'coz I'm not very good at this writing thing, especially writing drama like this.**

**Again, TheFrogKiller has been helping me a lot with this (and this whole plot in general), so credit to him for most of the storyline.**

**And in response to talking about Trevia and what Dark Axem said, I entirely agree by the way, I do much prefer it when she shows emotion rather than just being a 2D cut-out of an assassin. Basically, I was just worried I went too far though making her cry into her pillow, making her seem a little too much like an upset teenage girl than who she was. But most people seemed to like it, so that's okay. I liked it too, I like characters showing weaknesses, no matter how subtle they are. One of my favourite moments in James Bond (who, let's admit it, isn't exactly the type of character who shows weaknesses!) was a line where somebody was talking about what they found out about him, and they came to "Married once to-" and he just cut them off with "I think you proved your point" with a really clenched jaw. (In one of the Bond films he married, but his wife was killed). I loved that, a little subtle weakness in an otherwise invincible character. So I like putting weaknesses in my characters, especially ones like Trevia. I mean, if Vivli has a weakness, or something bothers her, nobody notices it as special, because she's always like that, but when it's somebody like Trevia, I think it can be effective. I just wanted to make sure I didn't go too far, which apparently I didn't, so I'm very glad of that! So yeah, I'm really happy everybody (well, the two people who reviewed at least) enjoyed it!**

**Right. I'll shut up now and get on with the chapter.**

**CHAPTER 44**

**KAZHAM**

The sight of an elvaan warship moored just off the coast of Kazham had drawn much attention. Mithran soldiers lined the coast, but every single one was uneasy. Even to Kazham, one of the most remote civilisations in Vana'diel, news of the war on the mainland had reached them, and they were afraid the next step in San d'Oria's conquest was to take Kazham. The soldiers moved their spears uneasily, feeling like they were stood on the front lines of an epic war.

Except it wasn't. A lone rowing boat was heading for the shoreline. They all waited curiously, their eyes attracted to the ship and its set of powerful looking cannons, safely tucked away behind golden doors. As the rowing boat got closer, their eyes fell on the approaching group. A hume stood at the front of the boat, waving a white flag.

The rowing boat bumped against the shore and the unusual group of six people climbed out, two mithra, two humes, a tarutaru and an elvaan. The mithran defence force regarded them curiously.

"Urm. Hello." Olose said with a nervous wave.

"Who are you, outlanders, and why are you on our land?" Snarled the person Olose assumed to be the commander of the mithran forces.

"I'm Captain Olose Sampson, of the _Destiny_….._II_." He remembered to add the new number eventually, a little sad at the memory of the destruction of the original ship.

"And what is your business here?" Asked the commander.

"One of my crew, Trevia Heart, has been recalled to Kazham." He answered, pointing to Trevia, who was shuffling along with an uncharacteristic nervousness about her.

"Recalled?" The commander said in surprise. "If she left, it was herrrr own decision. Therrrre is no rrrreturning."

"Glad that's sorrrrted. Let's go." Trevia laughed nervously, turning to return to the rowing boat. Olose just rolled his eyes.

"She's here for a marriage, as summoned by her family." Olose stated. The commander paused.

"Oh, _that _Trevia." She sighed irritably. "Verrrrry well. You have delivered your carrrrgo captain." The commander stated. "You may returrrrn to your ship, we shall take Trevia from here."

"I don't think you understand." Olose stated firmly. "Trevia is not here to marry, but to correct a mistake your authorities have made, before she shall return with us. She is part of my crew."

"Outlanders may not walk Kazham." The commander stated in a low growl.

"And I will not leave my crew members!" Olose's voice became a far more fearsome growl than the commander's, and she shivered slightly.

"V-verrrry well." She said, slightly shaken. "I will allow you to enterrrr, but do not expect an entirely warm reception."

"Wouldn't think of it." Olose grumbled.

The crew walked through the streets of Kazham, a little taken aback by the looks they were receiving from the gathered mithra.

"Everrrrybody is starrrring at me!" Whined Suse.  
"Just makes you feel popular." Olose whispered to Suse. She smiled.

"This does indeed make me feel rather uncomfortable." Arcadia admitted.

"Well, Trevia, where are we supposed to be going?" Nadia asked Trevia bluntly.

"Urm, I'm not entirely surrrre." She admitted weakly. "It has been a long time." The heat upon her skin felt so familiar, but somehow it made her heart sink. The wooden huts around were so familiar. She thought she recognised the little alley she spotted. Had she played in it as a child?

"Well, well, well." A voice snapped her back to reality. A group of mithra had surrounded them. "The infamous Trevia Heart returns to Kazham."

"Infamous?" Olose asked.

"She didn't say? Or don't you stupid outlanders know?" The head of the mithran group, clearly some kind of warrior, taunted. "Selected for brrrrreeding, the highest honour, for marrrrriage, and she turned and ran. So pathetic. She threw away everrrrrything we all wanted, and yet she is still chased!" The leader started to laugh. "And now she hangs around with you misfits. An elvaan without an arm, a midget, a hairy hume, some tart and…what's this? A mithra without a tail?" She laughed again. "How pathetic! How do you live with yourself girl? You've lost your tail and dishonoured your existence!" Suse looked like she was going to cry. Olose drew his sword and placed it at the mithra's neck.  
"We don't want trouble, but if you lay one finger on her I will make you beg for death." Olose said with a threatening glint in his eyes.

"You arrrre herrrrre by the smallest thread of good faith. You cause any trouble and you will be killed." The mithra taunted.  
"You insult my friends and my crew." Olose stated. "Do your worse."

"Urm, no." Trevia sprang in front of Olose.

"So, she speaks?" Laughed the mithra.

"I do morrrre." Stated Trevia, and in a blur of movement she snapped the mithra's arm and got her in a head lock. The mithra screamed before Trevia hurled her into the ground. "These people are my friends. I won't let you thrrrreaten them. You forrrget, while I am herrrre, I cannot be harmed or the person who did the harrrrming shall be severely punished." The mithra got up clutching her arm. She went to say something, but thought better of it, turned and ran. The rest of her group followed. Olose blinked slightly.

Trevia began to walk away, but Olose stopped her.

"What was all that about?" He asked.

"What?" She shrugged.

"_That_. Why can't you be harmed here?" He questioned.

"Simple rrrrrules. The mithran males are rare, much rarer than us females. If they were not to marry, and breed, then the race would die out and there would be no morrrre mithra." She explained. "Therrrreforrrre, the mate of a male must be protected to continue the race. Since I'm currrrrently selected as one, I cannot be harrrrmed or else it is taken as trying to destroy all mithra." She folded her arms smugly.

"They werrrre mean!" Suse sobbed. "They picked on me!"

"They were not exactly pleasant to any of us." Arcadia pointed out, obviously a little hurt herself.

"Charming place you grew up in, Trevia." Phabrizoe joked.

"Most of them have never seen an outsider." Trevia explained. "And like any society, therrrrre arrrre a few people who like to cause trouble, such as those you have just seen. Most people arrrre reasonable."  
"Seems like you're a little defensive there, Trevia." Olose pointed out. "Strange. I could swear you didn't want to return to this place." He smiled slightly, but Trevia's face just wobbled, clearly dealing with dozens of emotions.

"I can't help but think I was happy herrrre." She told Olose. "When grrrrowing up. It was so much easier to forrrrget when I didn't need to return." She noticed the crew were staring at her, and she quickly looked to the floor. "Urm, I was just pointing it out." She blushed.

Footsteps began to approach the crew, and they all turned around. Trevia's eyes went wide as somebody wrapped her arms around her.

"It can't be." She whispered.

"Trevia! Oh, I'm so glad to see you!" Came a voice.

"Hi, Mum." She said blankly, trying desperately to escape from her mother's arms.

"We werrrre so worrrrrried about you. We thought you might miss the wedding!" Trevia's mother explained.

"Figures." Trevia grumbled. "Wouldn't actually be worrrried about me, would you?"

"You'rrrrre lucky we carrred at all." Her mother snapped. Trevia was again becoming very self conscious of the stares of the crew. As people who had thought of her as a toughened assassin, a conversation with her mother of this type was slightly jarring.

"Mum, I'm herrrre because I'm not getting married. I came to settle this once and forrrr all." Trevia explained.

"You get given the grrrrreatest honourrrrr in all of Kazham and trrrry to turrrrn it away?" Her mother cried in disbelief. "I will not allow you to be a blight on the honour of ourrrr family. I won't!"

"I don't think it's your decision to make." Olose shot.  
"And who might you be to speak for my daughterrrr?" Her mother shot. "Please don't tell me she's found some revolting hume loverrrr in you?"

"I should hope not!" Arcadia exclaimed, causing Olose to smirk.

"I'm her captain." He gave in answer. "And a friend."

"Her captain? So you'rrrre the mighty Olose Sampson? It was only yourrrr fame that allowed us to trrrrack her down." Her mother explained.

"Damn you." Trevia shot.

"Now, come with me. Jeren's waiting." She stated.

"Jeren?" Nadia asked.

"Yes, yes. Trevia's futurrrre husband." Her mother explained. Trevia paused, remembering that name. That alley. She was playing in the alley. With a boy named Jeren. They had been childhood friends. Then why had she run away? If only she could remember! But she couldn't. He must have chosen her to marry. She must have hated that feeling of a decided future, so she had left, and made her own future.

The group entered one of the shacks that lines Kazham, and a male mithra instantly fell to one knee before them.  
"My Lady." He stated. Trevia rolled her eyes. "You have returned as I hoped you would! I pray you remember me."

"Yes, Jeren. Even I could not forrrrget you." She sighed.

"I didn't think it was possible, but you've only grown more beautiful in your absence." He told her, standing.

"I like him." Arcadia whispered to Olose. "He can speak properly. No rolling of the 'r's."

"Listen, Jeren, I-" Trevia began.

"Please, Trevia, there's no need to talk now. I haven't seen you in well over a decade. Let us eat and be happy, and deal with whatever is on your mind later." He told her with a friendly smile.

"No Jeren, let's not." Trevia said bluntly. "I can only say this bluntly. I do not want to marry you. I am herrrre to tell you that the marriage is off." Jeren's eyes went wide as his heart was torn in two.

"But-" He stumbled over his words. "But I-" He couldn't quite manage to speak, and Trevia sighed. "Trevia, I'm a male, and thus I can chose any girl in the whole of Kazham. Yet years on, my heart still belongs to you. Can you not see how important you are too me?"

"And can you not see how little you mean to me?" Trevia shot. Jeren shut his eyes painfully. "I'm sorrrry." She sighed. "I do not feel anything for you, or this place. I do not want to marrrrry a man I do not love. You must underrrrstand." Jeren gulped.

"I understand." He answered, doing his best not to cry. "I am sorry you had to return here." He got up and walked to the door. "Please. Feel free to stay the night, and then you can depart tomorrow." He turned to Olose. "I trust you are her captain?"

"Glad you could tell." Olose told him.

"Thank you for bringing her back, even if it was for such a short time. I am glad I got to see her again, even if it was just for a few minutes." Jeren walked out, no longer able to hold his own tears back. Everybody stood in an awkward silence.

"Sorry." Trevia whispered, guilt tugging at her heart.

Jeren wondered through the streets of Kazham, and arrived at the coast. He stood there, tears running down his cheeks. He loved her so much, but she didn't care. He would not have her in an empty marriage with him. It wasn't what she wanted, so it wasn't something he would force on her. Why wouldn't she love him? Why couldn't she understand how much he cared?

"I know your pain." Came a voice. Jeren spun around.

"Oh. You." He stated. Another male mithra stood across from him.

"Yes, me." He answered plainly. "You know, they give us one freedom. The ability to chose who we must marry. And now they aim to take that away from us."

"I am not in the mood for one of your rants about how we are oppressed, Jacob." Jeren shot. Jeren often dealt with Jacob, a protestor mostly for the rights of the male mithra, feeling they had been oppressed as little more than breeding machines. No male could hunt, go out into the world, or follow any profession, all were oppressed by the larger, female half of the population. Jeren intended to agree with him, but didn't like causing trouble.

"How about a solution?" Jacob offered.

"To what?" Jeren asked.

"Your problem." He answered. "Trevia Heart will never love you as who she has become. You must make her into who she was before she left."

"Trevia was a young, innocent girl before she left." Jeren stated. "Now she's bitter. I could see it her eyes. She barely remembers me. I don't know if there's anything of who she was left in her."

"What if I could make her love you?" Jacob offered.

"I'm not interested in you forcing her to love me." Jeren shot back. "I love her. I'm not going to let you and your magic tricks mess with her mind. If she does not love me, then she should not be forced to. That was her decision. I love her too much to force her to be different."

"Ah, but what if it _was _her who loved you?" Jacob asked. "I could erase her recent memory. Make her that person she was before she left. Except in her older body, and older form, she'd be much more open to her feelings for you. She'd admit they exist instead of running away. She'd love you, and it would be the girl you fell in love with that loved you, not this twisted girl she has become." Jeren turned back to Jacob.

"You can make her into the person she was?" He asked.

"Yes." Jacob stated. "Then, if she chooses to love you, it is her choice. I will not influence her emotions, purely her memories."

"No. It's immoral." Jeren stated.

"I know how she feels. I can sense it." Jacob explained. "She burns with guilt from her life as an assassin. She can't stand the thought she took lives now she has a bond with this pathetic rabble she has associated herself with. She can barely still live with herself. It would be doing her a favour."

"How do you know all this?" Jeren asked, his eyes darkening.

"I have my methods." Smiled Jacob. "Now, she is upset. She is guilty. She feels sick whenever she considers what she has done and I am certain has pondered suicide more than once. My potion would cure her of all of that, and might even make her love you. It would be an act of kindness for your true love. Do not tell me you do not want that." Jacob's face etched into a smile.

"It seems like a perfect solution." Jeren admitted.

"It is." Jacob smiled. "That is why I've approached you."

"So why would you do this for me?" Jeren asked suspiciously.

"We males are all in this together. If I help you marry, then surely you will support my cause for our equal rights." He smiled.

"That's all you ask in return? My support?" Jeren asked.

"Yes." Jacob stated.

"Then I agree. After all, you know I support what you say anyway. It is unfair we cannot do what the females do. We are not physically anything less. We are just rarer in society. It seems unfair."

"Exactly." Jacob smiled. "Another supporter, especially one who is married, will greatly aid my cause. And in return, I shall use this potion to assist Trevia in dealing with her guilt, and finding her love." Jeren sighed.

"What must I do?" He asked.


	45. Memories

**Author's Note: A few things I need to say. Firstly, updates might stop for a day or two, because I need to reformat my computer. I was going to do it tonight, but managed to persuade my brother (since I dunno how to do it and he does) to put it off until tomorrow. So there might not be an update for a day or two while I get everything sorted. Sorry everybody! Don't mean to let you all down, but there's not much I can do.**

**Secondly. Spider story? Urm, yeah, I'm gonna side with Phabrizoe and hope it's false. Sadly, I'm not sure if the reasoning holds up, because the eardrum _is _living meat for it to eat (eeeeew) and she still would have been able to hear inside her head with one eardrum (louder than outside, really). Either way, I might be wrong on those bits, and I certainly don't wanna make an arachnophobic feel worse, so I'll be quiet. That and if I keep this up I'll be the arachnophobic one!**

**Plus the spider story overshadowing my own is getting embarrassing.**

**CHAPTER 45**

**MEMORIES**

The crew were lazily grouped together in Trevia's house. Olose and Arcadia were sat on the sofa, Arcadia slumped against his shoulder. A lose strand of hair fell down her face and Olose tucked it behind her ear, prompting her to smile, indicating she was not as asleep as she appeared. Suse was curled up on the floor while Nadia and Phabrizoe were slouched in the chairs scattered around. Trevia was stood up by the window, looking out over Kazham. It was getting dark.

Olose wanted to get up and talk to her, but with Arcadia slumped against him, couldn't. She clearly had a lot on her mind. The door creaked open and, much to Trevia's surprise, Jeren walked in.

"Can I have a word?" He whispered, noticing the peaceful atmosphere.

"What is it?" Trevia asked, trying to hide how guilty she felt.

"I wanted to apologise for before. I'm sorry. I should never have made you return." He explained. The two paused.

"I'm sorry I can never be the girrrrrl you want me to be." Trevia said bluntly.

"That's okay." He laughed. "At least let me buy you a drink before you leave. Could even let you in on what you've missed around here."

"Not rrrreally interested, thanks." Trevia sighed. "But I could go forrrr a drink." She decided, catching Jeren's sad expression. He smiled.

"Great!" He exclaimed.

The two were sat outside a tavern, enjoying the warm Kazham air.  
"You know, I hate to admit it, but I've really missed this place." Trevia said quietly. "Just the warrrrmth. It's so cold everrrrywherrrre else."

"Well, my offer stil stands for you staying." Jeren told her. She laughed.

"Thanks, but my life is with my crrrrew." She answered. He sighed.

"I understand." He rose from his seat. "Here, let me grab us a drink. Want anything specifically?"

"I'll drrrrink anything." Trevia smiled. Jeren nodded and wondered into the tavern.

Trevia turned back to the street, watching the mithra go about their business. The hot air was so soothing, it was pleasant not to have goose bumps from the cold all the time. And there was something delightfully simple about the place, the way everybody just thought about surviving in the little town, there was no worries about the outside world. Nobody cared about the wars on the mainland or what occurred to the people there. It was all about Kazham. It was nice. It was simple. But it wasn't for her.

Jeren emerged and passed Trevia her drink. She looked down into it and swirled it around.

"Hope ya like it." He grinned.

"I'm surrrre I will." She said, taking a gulp. Her face made an incredibly sour expression and Jeren laughed.

"Suppose it's a bit strong for you." He mocked. "Guess you just can't handle your drink. That's okay."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She said playfully, far more playfully than she should have. She lifted up the mug, and downed the entire drink in one. "Therrrre! See! Too strrrrong my tail!" She suddenly swayed.

"Trevia? You alright?" Jeren quickly asked. His concern was real, but his puzzlement was not.

"I feel…" She managed to splutter. "….Dizzy." She collapsed to the floor.

"Trevia?" Jeren cried, lifting her up.

"Who's Trevia?" She muttered. "Who am I? What's happening?" Her mind was pounding, emotions ripped through her in a way they never had before. "I'm scared! What's happening?" She cried. Jeren's eyes went wide. She had just admitted she was scared. He knew, even from their short contact, that Trevia would never do that. The potion was taking effect. "Help me! Help me Jeren!" She sobbed, cuddling him for comfort. He was taken aback. He hadn't expected it to quite happen like that. "No! No!" She began to shout, drawing much attention. "I'm Trevia Heart! I will not forrrrget! I will not! I will not!"

_I will not forget!_

_Olose. Arcadia. Suse. Phabrizoe. Nadia. The Destiny. Everything we've been through. We're a crew and a team._

_All for one and one for all._

_Olose taught me that phrase after he had come back from San d'Oria. Said a friend had said it to him._

_I will not abandon them! I won't! I will not forget who I am! Who they are! You cannot take my memories from me! You can't! And you won't!_

_I am Trevia Heart. Member of the crew of the Destiny. Olose Sampson is my Captain and my friend. I am Trevia Heart. I am-_

_Who am I? What's my name? _

_T-. It began with a T. Trevia. That's it. Trevia. Where am I? Heh, this bed is soft. Hey! This is my room! But it's changed. It's all clean. Where's all my things? And- I'm big! I've grown up? What? How? HELP! SOMEBODY HELP! SOMETHING STRANGE IS HAPPENING! Where is everybody?_

"MUM!" Trevia bellowed in fear, desperate for the arms of her parents. She sprang up in bed. Her mother quite rapidly entered the room.

"Trevia? Are you alright?" She asked quickly.

"Mum? What happened? My rrrrroom. It's all differrrrent." She cried in a panic.

"What? Your rrrrrroom has been like this ever since you left." Her mother said in confusion.

"Left? Left wherrrrre?" Trevia was sobbing in confusion. Her head was pounding.

"What do you mean?" Her mother asked. "Jeren carried you home last night. You were unconscious. Guess you drank a drink that was a bit too strong for you."

"_Therrrre! See! Too strrrrong my tail!" _

"Urm. I did?" She repeated. "Why would I be drrrrrinking? I'm too young, nobody would everrrr serrrrrve me."

"Trevia, honey, you're plenty old enough." Laughed her mother. Trevia sat up in confusion.

"Urm, I am?" She suddenly started shaking. "Mummy! I can't remember!" She hugged her mother, crying. "I can't remember! What's happened to me?"

"Shh." Her mother said gently. "Calm down."  
"I can't remember!" She sobbed. "I was- I was- What was I doing? Who am I? I'm old. How am I old? I'm only twelve!" She buried herself in her mother's shoulder, crying.

"Trevia. It's okay. It sounds like you have amnesia. I'll get the doctor to look at you." She said softly.

"I'm scarrrred." She sobbed. "I want to see Jeren!" She suddenly decided. Her mother let a slight smile edge across her face. Trevia had been best friends with Jeren when she was little. With the right persuasion, when she was this distressed, then perhaps she would still marry him. She shook the thoughts from her mind as Trevia curled up on her bed, sobbing.

"I'll go and see if I can find him." She said gently.

Olose paced, frustrated, down by the shoreline. He had gone to prepare the rowing boat to leave while Trevia slept in, apparently sick, but now it was the afternoon and she still hadn't shown up.

"Right! That does it!" He snapped. "I'm going to look for her!"  
"Olose." Arcadia said gently. "Are you sure that is the best course of action?"

"What do you mean?" Olose asked, sounding slightly offended. He knew _exactly _what she meant.

"You are not our best diplomat." She stated.

"Diplomat? I'm just gonna go in there and pick her up. Simple." Olose shrugged.

"Exactly." Arcadia said with a slight smile. "You will anger most of Kazham in doing so. Let me do it." Olose paused in consideration.

"You won't do anything stupid like get kidnapped, will you?" He asked. She put her hands on her hips and stared at him.

"Look. Just because I happen to have been kidnapped just once or twice does not mean it will happen again." She said sarcastically.

"Yes ma'am!" Olose saluted. Arcadia shot him a stare and he shrunk away. He swore he could hear Suse giggling.

There came a tapping at Trevia's front door, and her mother answered it. Arcadia was in the process of straightening out her dress when she saw her.

"Hello." She said with a curtsey. Trevia's mother rose an eyebrow. "I am afraid we were not properly introduced last time we met. I am Lady Arcadia Sampson." That still sounded weird to her. "You are Trevia's mother, correct?"

"Yes." She replied, a little taken back by Arcadia's formality. "My name's Helena. Did you want something?"

"Trevia." She answered simply. "We're looking to depeart, and cannot leave without her."

"I am afraid she doesn't want to go with you. She's decided to stay here." Helena told Arcadia.

"Oh?" Arcadia sounded a little surprised. "Can I see her?"

"Mum? Who arrrre you talking to?" Came a voice as Trevia marched out into the living room. Arcadia blinked. Trevia was wearing a long brown dress, with her put in pretty little pigtails.

"Trevia?" She asked in shock.

"Hello." Trevia smiled. "Who arrrre you?"  
"What do you mean?" Arcadia asked, confused.

"It's a simple question, even for a hume." Trevia laughed.

"Trevia!" Snapped Helena. "Behave yourself."

"Yes Mum." She replied, looking to the floor and fiddling with her dress. Arcadia was struggling to speak.

"What has happened to her?" She managed to stammer.

"What does she mean, Mum?" Trevia asked, whirling around in a circle and watching the tails on her dress spin behind her. She giggled a bit, and stumbled slightly from being dizzy.

"Nothing, dear." Helena told Trevia. Arcadia rose an eyebrow.

"Nothing? Nothing?" Arcadia repeated in shock. "That is not Trevia! What have you done to her?" Arcadia's voice had risen far louder than she had intended, and Trevia fell silent in shock.

"What do you mean?" Trevia stammered, sounding quite scared. "I'm Trevia." She whimpered. "Mum! Is she going to do something to me?" She looked like she was going to cry.  
"No. Don't worry honey. The nasty woman was just leaving." Helena slammed the door and Arcadia blinked again.

She had clearly failed when it came to diplomacy. She had lost her temper, and may have lost Trevia because of it. She waited a few moments, taking a few calming breaths, and then knocked again. There was an uncomfortably long pause before Helena opened the door again. Trevia was nowhere in sight.

"What do you want? We have nothing left to discuss." Helena snapped.

"What has happened to Trevia?" Arcadia inquired, this time taking a step inside the house so that the door couldn't be slammed on her again.

"I don't know what you'rrrre talking about." Helena said casually.

"Do not pretend." Arcadia sighed in exasperation. "We all know something is not right here. I appreciate you want your daughter to stay with you, but something is clearly wrong with her."

"It's just a bit of amnesia." Helena answered. "Nothing you should interfere with."

"Amnesia?" Arcadia whispered. "But, how?"

"I don't know, but it doesn't matter. Trevia has made the decision to stay with me and Jeren." Helena explained.

"Jeren?" Arcadia quickly repeated. "But that means-"

"Yes. Jeren has been comforting her up in her room." Helena told Arcadia. "And it appears they arrrrre quite close. Especially with how distressed Trevia is at the moment." She paused. "You know what that means, don't you?"

"If you are planning to use Trevia's amnesia as an excuse for their marriage, then we may be forced to take action." Arcadia warned. Helena took a step closer to Arcadia. She towered over Arcadia (despite Arcadia's high heels giving her extra height), and her bare arms flexed with muscle, she was an experienced mithran huntress after all.

"If you interfere with Kazham affairs, you will be punished." Helena warned.

"And if you do anything to harm a friend of ours, mother or not, _you _will be punished." Arcadia shot back, once again forgetting she was supposed to be diplomatic.

"Is that a threat?" Helena growled. Arcadia shivered.

"No, of course not." She quickly back peddled, clearly scared. "I am just informing you that Olose will not stand for any harm you bring to Trevia. She made her wishes perfectly clear before she suffered this damage to her mental state." Arcadia paused. "Making her marry now is nothing less than exploiting your own daughter. Surely you can see the flaw in that?"

"She hasn't been my daughter since she ran away." Helena stated. "She's changed. The person you and your valued friends have made her was a twisted, horrible woman. Now she's a sweet young girl again. You tell me, Lady Arcadia, which do you think is better?"

"That is not a judgement for me to make." Arcadia told her. "It is simply who Trevia was. If you do not allow her to be that person, then you have essentially killed her." The door behind Arcadia suddenly swung open. Arcadia was already tense from the looming threat of Helena, so she screamed and jumped away.

Olose stood in the doorway, looking quite casual.

"What are you doing here?" Arcadia cried, still shocked. Helena just rose an eyebrow.

"I followed you to make sure nothing happened to you." Olose explained.

"Nice to see there is trust in this marriage." Grumbled Arcadia.

"And then heard your raised voice. I also heard the world 'amnesia'. What's happened?" He asked.

"Nothing concerrrrning you." Helena snapped. "My daughter is my concern." Olose rose an eyebrow and stepped forwards.

"You certain that's the way you want to play things?" He inquired with a deadly serious face.

"Yes." Helena snapped.

"Very well. Come on, Arcadia." He turned and exited casually. Arcadia looked a little startled, and then followed.

Arcadia hurried to catch up with Olose, who was marching back to the shore.

"We are not just going to leave her, are we?" She panted. Olose froze.

"She's got amnesia right?" Olose asked. Arcadia nodded.

"I have never seen her behave in such a way. It is almost like she is a little girl again." Arcadia explained.

"Great. All we need. Another Suse." He sighed. "Right. Course of action. We get Trevia back. We get her memories back. We put Kazham behind us and never come back."

"But she is just a scared girl. She does not even know us. How do you plan to do this?" Arcadia asked. Olose paused.

"What's a plan?" He said blankly, and Arcadia smirked.


	46. Medicine

**Author's Note: Well, I got up a few hours early so that I'd have time to do this for you before I had to wipe the computer. I'm tired, but it's done at least! I didn't like the thought of letting anybody down. Unfortunately, I still can't guarantee I can get an update done tomorrow, which I'm really sorry for.**

**Anyway, this chapter has one weird bit I guess, which I'll mention after you've read it.**

**CHAPTER 46**

**MEDICINE**

"Olose!" Arcadia whispered angrily.

"Hey, trust me." He smiled, half climbing up the wall of Trevia's hut.

"Trust you? You are just going to scare her!" Arcadia snapped.

"Yeah, maybe, or _maybe _I'll jolt her memories back into her. Either way, we'll find out how bad it is." He grinned from his position of hanging off of Trevia's hut.

"What part of plan did you not understand?" Arcadia grumbled.

"This is a plan." Olose half-shrugged, almost falling off of the wall. He reached the window to Trevia's bedroom. He made a 'shhh' motion with his hand and scampered inside. Arcadia rolled her eyes.

Trevia was curled up on her bed, peacefully asleep. She was smiling, which was an odd sight in itself. Olose stood in the window before hopping down. Trevia didn't move, still asleep. He reached out and gently rocked her. She moved and her face suddenly turned to a frown. Olose took a step back. She curled up tighter.

She was having a strange dream. She was on a boat. Why was she on a boat? She had never been on a boat in her life. There was this gigantic monster, a sea horror. How did she know that? She'd never seen one, or even heard anybody mention one. It was ripping the boat to pieces, and she was fighting it, along side some stranger. A man she didn't recognise. The sea horror grabbed her in a tentacle and threw her across the deck. She crashed down and woke up with a scream.

She panted for a few moments as she came to her senses. It was just a dream. A bit strange, but a dream. She figured she must have heard somebody mention a sea horror somewhere before, probably one of the sailors that would occasionally call in for much needed supplies. She curled up again, it was late and she was tired. Besides, that man looking over her was scary.

Man looking over her?

She bolted up and went to scream. Olose put his hand over her mouth quickly, and put his finger over his lips, telling her to shh. She started to shake.

"I'm not here to hurt you." He stated quickly.

"W-who arrrrre you?" Trevia quaked through tears. Olose forced a smile.

"A friend." He answered. "A loyal one at that."

"I don't know you." She whimpered. "Go away!" Her voice was getting too loud, so Olose put his finger on her lips, making sure she was quiet.

"You do know me, only you don't remember." Olose explained. "We've been through a lot together, ya know? We chased down a crime lord, saved San d'Oria, we've fought a giant, we've battled a warship of Windurst, taken out a fleet of elvaan vessels, hell, we even killed a sea horror."

"I haven't done any of those-" She suddenly paused. "Wait. What?"

"What's wrong?" Olose asked.

"Sea horrrrrror?" She repeated, shaking. That man in her dreams, was it him? No. He was taller. Had shorter hair. And a different face. But then why could she see the stranger in her dreams so clearly? She shook her head in scared confusion.

"Yeah, it was pretty scary too." Olose smiled. "Even though you didn't want to admit it."

"I've never left Kazham." She stated.

"Yes, you have. They've done something to your memory." Olose told her. "Please, trust me."

"Trrrrrust you?" She asked in disbelief. "I don't even _know _you!"

"Shh. Listen, Trevia, you're a friend, but this isn't you. That much I can tell you. The Trevia I know is cold hearted, but I think she cares deep down. Hell, I know it. But she doesn't behave like this, she doesn't like to show her emotions. They've _changed _you, they've messed with your very identity!" Olose told her, tinges of anger in her voice.

"This Trevia you know sounds like a horrible person." She muttered. "I don't want to be her."

"You _are _her!" Olose explained.

"I'm not!" Trevia screamed, turning away. "I'm not! I'm not!" She sobbed. Helena rushed into the room, but Olose was already gone.

"Are you alright?" She asked quickly. Trevia just shook in her mother's arms, remaining silent. "What were you screaming about?"

"H-he was here." She shivered.

"He? Who?" Helena asked in deep concern.

"He said I was this perrrrrson I'm not." She spluttered. "What's happening to me, Mum?"  
"Don't worrrrrry." Her mother held Trevia in her arms. "We'll sort it out tomorrow. Just rrrrrest for now." Trevia pushed a smile, and curled up, still shaking. "Do you want me to fetch Jeren for you? I'm surrrre he'd keep you company if you'rrrre scarrrrred." Helena offered.

"No Mum." She said quietly. "Can you stay with me for a bit?" Helena smiled warmly.

"Of course I will." She replied, holding Trevia. Trevia snuggled into her mother's warm arms, and fell asleep.

Trevia slept heavily, constantly dreaming about boats, and that strange man she had seen before. There were others too. Occasionally she swore she saw that girl who had called on her house earlier, and seemed to argue with her mother. She couldn't help but feel something unusual was happening, and that she was missing out on it all. Something was being kept from her. What if what that strange man said was true? What if she _was _somebody else, and they'd stolen her identity. She didn't want the one he talked about back, she sounded like a mean, cruel woman. She much preferred who she was. Of course she did. An offer to be a completely different person, that's what it was like. She didn't want her mind to change. She didn't!

She woke up sobbing. Her mother was there, as well as a strange hume. He had a long jacket on, a strange hat and long curly hair. It was a lot of clothing, considering the heat of Kazham, but apparently that's how he liked to dress. His eyes beamed brightly, he looked like a very scary and very strange person.

"Ahh!" She shrieked in shock. "Who arrrre you? Mum!" Her mother hugged her with a smile.

"Calm down." She said gently.

"Hello." The man waved. "I'm the Doctor."

"Oh." Trevia let out an embarrassed laugh. "Sorrrrrry."

"That's perfectly okay." The Doctor replied.

"Urm, why arrrre you a hume?" She asked nervously.

"Why are you a mithra?" The Doctor casually responded, searching through some tools.

"No, I meant, what happened to ourrrr doctor?" Trevia explained. The Doctor smiled.

"I was in the area." He replied.

"He came here while you were-" Helena paused, not wanting to tell Trevia she was 'gone'. "In the bit you've forgotten." She explained. "He's the only hume who's ever been allowed to live here. His skills are incredible, far beyond any Doctor we've ever had."

"Just shows you what the outside worlds can do." He said casually.

"Worlds?" Trevia repeated. "You said worlds."

"So I did." The Doctor said in a moment of observation. "Well spotted." He then went about sticking a thermometer in Trevia's mouth.

"She hasn't got a fever, Doctor." Helena told him. The Doctor paused.

"I know. I know. But at least it makes me look professional." He played with a metal cylinder for a few moments, which made a strange noise, but he promptly gave up on that. He shone a small enchanted crystal light into Trevia's ears, and looked around inside. They twitched nervously, making his job difficult. "Hm. A blood sample would be useful." He decided, pulling out a needle. Trevia thrust herself away, pulling her knees to her chest. "Oh, come on, it won't hurt." He looked at the needle. "Much." He decided, observing it. Trevia shivered. "It might be the only way to find out what's wrong with you."

"She has amnesia! We know that!" Sighed Helena.

"This is the kind of important information you should tell me beforehand." The Doctor replied with a smirk. Helena rolled her eyes.

"I _did_." She groaned.

"Do all mithra not understand a joke, or is it just your mother?" The Doctor asked Trevia with a warm smile. Trevia giggled.

"I think it's just herrrrr." She purred. "She's always- _ow!_" While Trevia was unprepared, the Doctor jabbed her and drained some blood out of her with the needle. He pulled it away and Trevia shook her arm. He put a slight bit of cotton wool to her arm.

"Hold that there for a few minutes." He said casually.

"Wow." Helena said in shock. "I've neverrrrrrrrrrr seen such an effective way of getting blood."

"Like I said, the medical technologies beyond Kazham are incredibly advanced." The Doctor explained. "You may be able hunters, but you certainly aren't doctors."

"If it's so grrrreat, then why don't you go back?" Helena asked. "You were only ship wrrrrrecked here, you can leave."

"I can, but being a doctor is about being where you are needed." He explained, casually packing away his things. "I shall see you later, once I've looked at the blood sample. If I can find out the problem, we may be able to isolate it and then find a cure." Trevia whimpered.

"I'm not surrrre I want to be cured." She told him. "I'm not surrrre I want to remember who I was."

"That's not a rare problem in amnesiacs." The Doctor said gently. "But remember, just because you receive your old memories again doesn't mean you snap back into that personality, you'll still have the memories of these past few days and you can still choose how to shape your life from there." The Doctor stood, and smiled. "I will let you know of my progress." He said, tipping his hat.

"Don't work too quickly Doctor." Helena whispered to him.

"Ah. Yes. The marriage." He replied. "A horrible exploitation of a horrific condition, if you ask me, not that you did. But that hardly stops me giving my opinion, does it now?" Helena shot him a stare. "Until next time." He turned and exited.

Olose was sat by the rowing boat on the shore, where the crew had set up a tent.

"So, Captain, what now?" Phabrizoe asked. "We can't just leave Trevia."

"I know, Phabz." Olose said, agitated. "But as long as she doesn't remember who we are, there's nothing we can do."

"But if she gets married in her amnesiac state, she'll be bound by Kazham law to stay in that marriage." Phabrizoe explained.

"I know!" Olose growled. "But there's nothing we can do! And worse, if we interfere with the marriage, we'll be exiled from Kazham. And then we really won't be able to help her."

"Why don't we just go and pick herrrrr up?" Suse asked in confusion.

"Because she doesn't want to come with us." Olose told Suse. Suse blinked.

"But she's our frrrrriend." She muttered.

"Not anymore. Not while she can't remember anything." Olose sighed. "Our only hope is that the doctors here can cure her. I've heard they have a hume doctor from the mainland, very latest medical supplies. That, at least, is a plus. I'd hate to know how mithran doctors work in a society like this one."

"I have done some research." Arcadia told Olose. "And at her age, the mithra will expect Trevia to join them on their hunts."

"But Trevia has no memory of combat." Olose thought aloud. "It would be like sending a twelve year old girl out to fight."

"Exactly." Arcadia replied.

"When's the next hunt?" Olose quickly asked.

"Tomorrow." Arcadia answered.

"Then we have a day to act!" Olose decided. "The doctors here may take too long, even if they could cure amnesia, which I don't believe they can. We need a course of action." Olose paused. "I talked to Trevia last night and I felt she was close to finding her memories. Perhaps if I talk with her again."

"Is she at her house still?" Arcadia asked. Olose paused, frozen. "What is it?"

"That's strange." He said to himself. "I can't smell her scent. She's disappeared."

"What?" Arcadia whispered.

"This place is full of mithra, so it's hard to pick out, but it seems to have vanished completely." Olose said to himself. "Maybe I just can't pick it up here." He shrugged. "I'll go and check her house, either way."

Olose walked through the hot streets of Kazham, observing the strange mithran culture. They were chopping up fish on a large table, and putting them on sticks to sell. The smell of fish was strong, and make it harder for him to find Trevia in the mess of smells. But he would still be able to pick out her scent, and it wasn't there. It didn't exist. As if somebody had changed it. He shook his head and continued to observe the strangeness of the small town. The lack of clothes mithra wore for one, wearing very little, was odd. The heat should burn their skin, but it didn't, even in their skimpy clothing. He certainly wasn't going to complain. The shops were all rather strange too, large wooden signs hanging outside before small doors leading within, but no windows, like they didn't want to advertise what was on sale. The guards stood outside a particularly large hut were strange as well, and Olose guessed that somebody of great importance lived within. He spotted the doctor's surgery, although what the blue box outside was he hadn't a clue. Probably some kind of strange storage shed. He walked into a cool cave, and heard water dripping. He stood under it for a moment. Kazham may be confusing, but it was a nice place. A gentle place. He walked along, and spotted somebody showering under one of the waterfalls coming from the nearby river. Trevia? But- how? He couldn't smell her, but there she was. Her scent had changed. He looked on in confusion. Making her an amnesiac was one thing, but changing her scent? Only a werewolf would notice the change. But that meant whoever was responsible knew who he was. What he was. He turned away from Trevia. He suddenly had a very bad feeling that this wasn't just about her. This wasn't just about the marriage. This was something to do with him!

Jacob stood by the bubbling heat of Ifrit's Cauldron. Behind him stood a figure of a powerful looking man.

"Is it done?" He inquired.

"Trevia's memory is crushed, sir." Jacob replied. "But I don't understand, how is one mithra a key to our ultimate victory, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Don't be foolish. Trevia's memory loss is but a convenient ploy to bring about the wedding." The lava bubbled behind the speaker. "When the wedding comes about, every mithra in Kazham will be forced to attend. It is then we strike."

"Wipe Kazham from the map and the female mithra population will be gone, leaving the males to dominate." Smiled Jacob. "We will no longer play second fiddle to anyone. We shall be our own race, free of the shackles they enforce upon us!" He sneered in victory. "This Olose Sampson may be a problem though. He could interfere."

"I am counting on it." Grinned the figure.

"Shall I dispose of him if he does so?" Jacob asked.

"Yes." The figure replied. "But to do not underestimate your foe." He passed a sheathed sword to Jacob. Jacob drew it. "The blade is pure silver." The figure explained. "You will be needing it."

"Pure silver?" Jacob repeated.

"The foe you face is no ordinary enemy." The figure spoke quickly. "Olose Sampson is a cursed being. A lycanthropic plague upon this world. It falls to you to cure us of his existence."

"Anything to further our goal." Jacob smiled.

"Good." The figure smirked. "Olose Sampson shall die!"

**Author's Note: Well, the bit I would figure as 'weird' is the Doctor, who I obviously tried to give some bizarre character instead of just being another dull figure. I don't know how it came off. It also evolved into an inside joke when I kept referring to him as 'the doctor'. Wonder why it's capitalised? Well, it's no coincidence he has a blue box outside his surgery! I doubt anybody'll get the joke there, but I put it in because I couldn't resist. Bootus is reading this story finally, and I know when (if) he gets to this bit, he'll shout at me lots. He hates it when I do things like that.**

**As usual, with the actual plot line, TheFrogKiller has given me lots of help. So thanks again, and remember to give him credit for this storyline, he came up with lots of the ideas!**

**I'm also sorry for ending it with typical 'villain speak', which I know is a bit of cliché, but it does make for effective cliffhangers!**


	47. Help

**Author's Note: I had a feeling you might get it Phabrizoe, but thought I had better be clear! Funny you should mention the scarf, originally it was in there as a line that 'he was extremely weird for wearing an unusually long scarf in the Kazham heat', or something to that effect, but I removed it so that people could treat him as an ordinary doctor, and not some funny kind of Easter egg. I didn't want people getting annoyed I did a ridiculous crossover, so as it stands, you can read it and take him as an ordinary normal doctor. Or you find him as a nod to a show I like. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, you're probably lucky. These kind of things would probably just annoy people.**

**Oh, and as for the spider story, I concede to Phabrizoe. Not only because he's probably right, but because I quite often go deaf in one year for reasons I'm not really sure of, and after finding two spiders scuttling around in my bathroom yesterday…well, I'm not too keen on following that line of thought!**

**Right. Here's the chapter. It contains a few more inaccuracies to Kazham lore, or Kazham in general, but that's because it's still 580 years odd before FFXI. I'll explain in more detail at the end.**

**CHAPTER 47**

**HELP**

Olose wondered into the tent the crew had pitched on the beach. They had made it their makeshift home until they could rescue Trevia and return to the _Destiny II_.

"Coming here was a bad idea." Olose sighed as he entered.

"I like the beach!" Beamed Suse happily.  
"Yeah, but Trevia is in trouble. And possibly all of us." Olose explained.

"Us, Captain?" Phabrizoe asked curiously.

"Yeah." Olose tried not to look down at Phabrizoe, he always felt like he was treating him as a child when he did so. It actuality Phabrizoe was possibly the most mature of all of them. "Something has changed Trevia's scent. The only reason they would do that is because a werewolf can find her easily by smell. That means whoever did this to her knows what I am, and is trying to deal with me directly."

"Cap'n!" Suse put up her hand to get attention.  
"Yes, Suse?" Sighed Olose.

"That's not trrrrrrrue!" She purred. "We can smell scents too!"

"She's right, Captain." Phabrizoe nodded. "Mithra can track scents too. It helps their hunting instinct."

"But then, surely they would notice that it's changed." Olose said to himself.

"Olose can track people, _anybody, _by scent across an entire city." Arcadia pointed out. "I doubt mithra can."

"Nope!" Suse cried.

"Exactly." She said with a slight smile. "If the change is subtle enough, it would only throw Olose off."

"So you really think this has more to do with us than the marriage?" Phabrizoe asked Arcadia.

"It would be logical to assume so, yes." Arcadia replied.

"But who would want to get vengeance against us?" Olose thought aloud.  
"How long have you got?" Nadia laughed. "We've annoyed more than enough people in our time. Hell, could be somebody from San d'Oria who supported the Cardinal. We annoyed enough people there."

"Look, it doesn't matter _who _is behind this. All that matters is we get Trevia's memory back." Olose decided. "Tomorrow is the hunt, and Trevia won't stand a chance. Yet tradition dictates that any mithra woman who is an adult has to hunt. Since she's lost her memories, she won't have a clue how to fight." Olose paused. "We don't have long to find a way to save her." Olose suddenly spun around as he heard a rustling outside. The tent door slowly opened, and they spotted a figure.

Trevia stood, looking (and feeling) particularly awkward, in the entrance to the tent.

"Urm, hello." She said nervously.

"Trevia?" Olose sprang to his feet. "What are you doing here?"

"Um, I thought you could help me." She answered. "You clearrrrly know who I am. Urm, who I was. I wanted some answerrrrs." Olose smiled slightly.

"Jeren is waiting for you outside, right?" He laughed.

"What? Yes, he is. How could you tell?" She asked quickly, startled.

"I'm a werewolf. I can track scents of-"

"You're a _what_?" Trevia screamed, falling over backwards. Jeren rushed in to her side.

"What did you do?" He yelled quickly.

"Nothing." Olose casually replied.

"H-h-he's a werrrrrewolf!" Trevia cried in fear.

"What?" Jeren shouted in surprise. Olose just waved, but Jeren was already running, taking Trevia's hand and dragging her away. Olose cursed.

"That went well." He groaned.

Nadia stood up, frustrated.

"I'll say!" She snapped. "That was our one chance to explain things and you blew it!"

"I didn't know she'd freak out!" Olose protested.

"You could have avoided that little fact until later." Nadia groaned.

"Well, I thought maybe it would jolt her memory or something." Olose explained.

"That's just an excuse and you know it." Nadia told him.  
"Well, yeah." Olose shrugged. "But it's a good one!"

"No it's not!" Suse input.

"That's not the point here." Olose sighed.

"Yes it is." She stuck out her tongue in victory.

"Okay." Olose said calmly. "This isn't the biggest problem we've had. She'll still talk to all of you." He paused. "Suse, perhaps you should talk to her. She's more like you than ever right now."

"No!" Suse cried. "They pick on me! They make fun of me!" She was clearly quite frightened.

"Well, Nadia can go with you. Anybody picks on her and they're in trouble." Nadia grinned as she heard Olose saying this.

"A one armed elvaan and a tailless mithra? Nice combination." Phabrizoe smirked.

"Hey, keep that up and I'll show you what I can do with one arm!" Nadia threatened, still smiling. Phabrizoe laughed.

"Right. This is the plan." Olose decided.

"You have a plan?" Arcadia said disbelievingly.

"Hey! Of course I have a plan!" Olose protested innocently. Arcadia just smiled. "Suse, you go with Nadia and see what you can find. Loopholes, ways we can delay the hunt. See if you can get Trevia out of it. I'm going to visit this doctor they have and see what he's found out."

"And me?" Phabrizoe asked.

"You stay here and make sure Arcadia doesn't get kidnapped or anything." Olose told him.

"Once! Once that has happened!" Arcadia protested. Olose laughed.

"I think it was a few more times than that." He said, almost patronising her. She stared at him, before smiling warmly.

"Fine. I will stay." She decided. "But only because I do not trust any of you to take care of the tent." Olose laughed.

"Right. We'll be right back!" Olose decided, turning and exiting.

Jacob stepped out of the shadows behind Jeren, who was pacing frantically.

"Jeren?" He asked. "You wanted to see me. You sounded quite frantic over the linkshell."

"Y-yes." Jeren stammered. "I've found out shocking news." He explained.

"Shocking?" Jacob inquired. "Please, explain."

"That friend of Trevia's. That Olose Sampson. He's-" He paused to take a deep breath. "-He's a werewolf."

"A werewolf?" Jacob repeated in surprise. "I thought they were all extinct."

"N-no. Apparently not." Jeren began to pace again. "This is dangerous. If he gets violent to reclaim Trevia, then what are we going to do? And what was he doing with Trevia in the first place?"

"Okay. Okay. Calm down." Jacob told him. "Now, that potion you used on Trevia destroyed her memories. They cannot return, thus she cannot remember who he is."

"Meaning?" Jeren asked, puzzled.

"Take this." Jacob drew the silver sword his mentor had given him.

"W-what is that?" Jeren stumbled.  
"A sword." Jacob answered. "An old family heirloom of mine." He added in a lie, so that Jeren did not expect any other interference. "Its blade is pure silver. More than enough to kill Sampson."

"Kill him?" Jeren exclaimed. "I don't want to kill him! Besides, I'm a male. We're not supposed to wield swords!"

"This it the exact kind of thing we are striking against!" Jacob cried passionately. "Besides, he is a cursed monster of darkness, not an ordinary mortal like us. Killing him would be a favour to the land." He added with a slightly sinister smile.

"I do not want to hurt anybody." Jeren stated. "I have Trevia by my side, that's all I want."

"If Olose interferes, he may stop your marriage. He may even kill her." Jacob warned. "If he interferes again, then you have the power to kill him. If he does not, then there is no reason to be concerned, and you need not cause any harm. Sound fair?"

"That does." Sighed Jeren. "Thank you."

"No, thank you." Smiled Jacob. "Soon I will be in a position to finally free us from our oppression, and me and you my friend will no longer have to worry about the shackles of our oppressors."  
"Of course." Jeren smiled. "I hope you're not planning to hurt anybody."

"Of course not!" Laughed Jacob. "I'm just hoping your marriage will place us males enough into the public eye for my point to be received. Entirely innocent, I assure you."

"Oh. Good." Jeren said. He didn't sound entirely convinced, resulting in a narrow stare from Jacob. "Well, I had better go and check on Trevia, she was fairly scared." Jeren decided, to end the conversation, and turned and left. Jacob paused.

"I hope you shall not become a problem, Jeren." He whispered in a low growl that nobody could hear, before turning to leave.

There came a knock on the door of the doctor's surgery. There was no reply. Olose paused and swung open the door, wondering in. Chairs were scattered around a table, and there was a door at the back, presuming leading to the actual surgery room. Olose approached it when he heard footsteps from behind.  
"Oh, hello." Came a voice.

"Where did you come from?" Olose cried, caught off guard. He had been too absorbed in investigating the room.

"From outside." The man stood in the doorway answered as though it was obvious. "I'm the Doctor."

"Ah, convenient." Olose muttered.

"Looking for me, were you?" He guessed, walking past the table and shuffled some of the reading material on it. Old issues of the Vana'diel Tribune he had clearly picked up from somewhere, there were none in Kazham. There were a few mithran books as well, a collection of fairy tales, a few myths, and the odd romance novel. Olose smirked at the thought of the warrior mithras enjoying a good romance. "So, what did you want?" The Doctor asked, casually wondering into his surgery. Olose followed.

"Urm, to know how you were getting on with a patient. Trevia Heart, to be precise." Olose looked around the surgery, impressed by the mighty operating table, and the range of precise tools. He assumed the Doctor had brought them with him from the mainland, before he had ended up in Kazham, however he had got there.

"Trevia?" The Doctor paused. "Ah yes, the mithran girl with amnesia. Nasty stuff. Poison."

"Poison?" Olose exclaimed.

"Why, yes." The Doctor replied. "Specific stuff. Magically engineered certainly. It targets the part of the brain that deals with long term memories, and destroys it. Uses the magical essence to target, meaning you can essentially erase any number of years from your memory."

"Why didn't you mention this to somebody?" Olose cried.

"Simple. It was obvious that the state of affairs benefited Trevia's mother, and her husband to be. Who was I to tell?" He smiled. "I've been waiting for an opportunity, and lo and behold, you walk into my surgery."

"So, what can we do? Do you have a cure?" Olose asked tensely.

"A cure shouldn't be possible. The long term memory is _destroyed_." He paused. "But science makes life boring, eh?" The Doctor smiled widely. "I believe, if your time with Trevia made a large enough impression, then you can trigger her memories via an emotional situation."

"Emotional situation? What do you suggest?" Olose asked, taking a step closer to the Doctor.

"This wedding. Trevia will doubtlessly accept in her situation." The Doctor paused. "Perhaps interference at the right moment will trigger the right sense of emotions and restore her memories."

"Sounds a little ambitious. And cutting it a little tight." Olose told him.

"Cutting it tight?" Smirked the Doctor. "Isn't that the best way to do these things?"

"I guess you may be right." Laughed Olose. "Thanks for the help, Doctor."

"Don't say that yet. I don't think this situation will quite be resolved so easily." The Doctor answered. "I know that neither Jeren nor Trevia's mother could have made such a potion, and it seems to have other side effects. Strange ones that make no sense." He explained. "Somebody else is behind this."

"I know." Olose replied.

"Then be careful." The Doctor warned. "There is more to this scheme than just a forced marriage, I am sure."

"But what?" Olose shrugged. "I don't understand what they could possibly achieve."

"I'm just a doctor." The Doctor smiled. "I can only tell you what you know, and wish you luck. I'll be here to help in anyway I can. I know these mithra pretty well. If you need any information, feel free to come to me."

"Will do, Doc!" Olose delivered a two fingered salute.

"And please don't call me that." The Doctor grumbled as Olose exited.

Suse threw her hands in the air in frustration.

"We're never going to find anybody who can help us." Grumbled Nadia.

"But Olose told us too!" Suse moaned.

"Yes, but we need to meet the mithran authorities. Whoever that might be. Your not exactly from around here, so what can you do?" Nadia pointed out. Suse shrugged, before a force hit her from behind. She spun around and a mithra sprang to her feet.

"I'm terrrrrrribly sorrrrrry." She purred, rubbing herself off.  
"It's okay!" Suse beamed, smiling.

"I need to pay morrrre attention. My mother's always telling me that." The mithra grumbled.

"Actually, excuse me, but could you help us?" Nadia asked. The mithra nodded, still uncomfortably rubbing dirt from her scantily clad body. "We're looking for somebody who might be the authority on the hunt. There's somebody participating, but she's dangerously vulnerable at the moment. She's suffering from amnesia. We have to make sure she doesn't or she will be killed." The mithra paused, fiddling with her long orange hair. She blinked her blue eyes a few times and then finally decided to speak.  
"Well, I can stop herrrrr." She answered.

"You?" Nadia asked quite sceptically. The mithra before her was even shorter than Suse, and looked scrawny. Not the type of person you would expect to be in charge of the hunt. She was young too. She couldn't be in her twenties yet.  
"Yeah me!" The mithra protested, sounding a little offended. "My mother deals with the hunt. So I can talk to herrrr."

"I thought it was the Kazham royalty that handled the hunt." Nadia said to Suse thoughtfully.

"It is!" The mithra smiled. "I'm Princess Viliv." She curtseyed (which wasn't as easy as it looked, since she wasn't in a dress).

"Princess?" Nadia and Suse exclaimed, surprised.  
"Yeah!" Viliv sounded slightly offended, again. "Is this that Trrrrrevia girl I heard about? The one for the marriage? I'm surrrrre I can talk them out of sending her on the hunt."

"If you could." Nadia smiled warmly.

"Thank you!" Suse beamed. Viliv smiled.

"I'll talk to herrrr." She told them. "You'rrrrre one of the morrrre interesting people I've bumped into." She laughed.

"You bump into people often?" Nadia joked.

"I'm a little clumsy, occasionally." Viliv said, blushing. "I'll see what I can do about your frrrrriend." Viliv seemed to enjoy her position of power. It was obvious she loved helping people, using her position for good. "Hope I see you again!" She waved, and wondered off, leaving a slightly perplexed Suse and Nadia looked at each other, confused over what had just happened.

"Now _that _was a stroke of luck." Nadia managed to say.

**Author's Notes: Right. Mithran royalty. Mithra have royalty, I hear you say? Well, no. No they don't. In the FFXI Chronicles series, the mithran royalty was revealed to have been disbanded hundreds of years ago, but kept running in secret to protect a certain artefact. Anyway, long story short, this is still a prequel of sorts, so I had to match up to that, meaning the royalty was in charge at this point in time. I never encountered contrary evidence in the game to the fact that Kazham had royalty at one point, so hopefully it isn't a problem for anyone. If it is, sorry!**

**Oh, and Viliv is an anagram of a certain wimpy mithra (urm, and wimpy fan fiction author), you may have noticed. This time it makes no sense for one of her ancestors (oops, just spoiled a bit of the FFXI Chronicles 2, think most people reading this one have read it though!) to be an anagram, unlike Sotobu who's an early incarnation. But I guess that family line have just always had something for names with 'l's, 'v's, and 'i's in them!**

**Final note, slightly more important, despite having successfully finished formatting my computer, it's still not working right. Keeps freezing during running games or DVDs, but it can handle text! I thought it was overheating, but turning up the fans and running it without the case revealed that wasn't the case. Rather than trouble you with my computer problems, I'm just saying this to inform you that if I miss an update (or loads), my computer probably got sent off for repairs or something. Sorry about that, but it needs to be fixed before I go university.**

**Speaking of university, tomorrow is my results day. These are the results that determine if I go and where I go. I'm nervous to say the least. If I fail to update tomorrow, I'm probably crying/celebrating. Let's hope it's the second one, eh?**


	48. Relations

**Author's Note: Important note. Updates may suffer due to my computer struggling to function. The processor threw a spark today, apparently, and my brother is constantly trying to fix it, meaning I can barely get near the dammed thing. So some days may go past without an update. If it suffers a horrific crash and I lose it completely, watch the reviews, because I'll try and get on a PC to leave one explaining the situation. Of course, that's if I haven't updated for a few days. As it stands, I might miss one or two lately while it's under repair. As usual, I'm really _really _sorry, but I'm helpless. I'll write whenever I can get on here though.**

**I'm still struggling with this storyline a little. I'm not sure what it is, I'm just finding it hard. Too many characters maybe? Perhaps it's the plot requiring quite a lot of skill to write, skill I don't have. I dunno. I'm just finding it hard. As per TheFrogKiller's request, I tried to put more of Trevia and Jeren interacting, but found it very _very _hard, so there's only two scenes this chapter. It's romantic dialogue, with drama thrown in, the two things I can't do well. So these scenes are a bit of a let down. Hopefully it'll pick up as the plot gets a move on.**

**Oh, and a final note, should go after really but I can't be bothered. Viliv is back with a bigger part this chapter. She's convenient, but wasn't really part of my plan. I wanted a storyline without Olose getting involved with royalty or people of high status, after Arcadia, and Astra, it's getting ridiculous. But I suppose it explains why he has good relations with every town and nation in the FFXI Chronicles. But I did want to do a storyline where he didn't get any support, but she serves a purpose here, so I've kept her in. Hope nobody minds.**

**And I've decided Viliv is too close to Vivli for my liking, in both character and name. Making an anagram of Vivli wasn't easy, but now she sounds like a clone. To the extent I've typed 'Vivli' by mistake a few times, but luckily caught myself. She's meant to be a distant ancestor, but is a little too close to her for my liking. I hope it doesn't bother anybody too much!**

**CHAPTER 48**

**RELATIONS**

Trevia was sprawled on her bed as Jeren walked in gently.

"You alright?" He asked. He never was any good at sounding caring.

"Been betterrrr." Trevia replied. "Is that a sword?" She exclaimed in surprise, noticing the weapon hanging from Jeren's belt.

"Yeah. Just for your safety." He explained.

"But it's illegal for a male to carrrrry one of those!" Trevia explained.

"I know. I know. But I want to be prepared if this old friend of yours tries anything." Jeren told her.

"I'm sorry." She said sadly. "I can't help being scarrrred. I can't remember anything. Not a single thing. Anybody could lie to me about who I was and I wouldn't know any differrrrent." She whimpered slightly, before turning over to face away from Jeren.

"Come on, it's not all bad." Jeren said softly. "We get to spend more time together."

"Thanks for being herrrre." Trevia sighed. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Hey, I can be hear forever, you know?" Jeren offered.

"You mean get married?" Trevia guessed. "How can I do that? I don't know what the other me would want. The me with the memories."

"Trevia, what if you're memories don't come back?" Jeren pointed out. "You can't live your life following the wishes of some woman who doesn't exist anymore. You are who you are. Not some strange woman who hung out with a werewolf." Trevia looked at him with confused eyes.

"I want to stay with you Jeren. I need you by my side." She said simply. "Marriage is a big, scarrrry step, but I'm willing. I want too. I _need _too. I can't handle this on my own." She started crying again, and Jeren hugged her.

"It's alright. I'll never abandon you Trevia. No matter what happens, or where we go, I'll do anything for you." He smiled. "As long as I'm around, you'll be safe. Forever." Trevia let a smile creep across her face, and hugged Jeren back.

Suse and Nadia burst into the tent.  
"We've got bad news!" Nadia announced.

"What is it?" Olose asked quickly, having already returned.

"We stopped Trrrrrevia from going on the hunt!" Suse cried happily.

"Why's that bad?" Olose asked.

"Because we've stopped one problem to face another." Nadia muttered. "A marriage is being planned for this coming Firesday."

"But that's in four days!" Olose cried. "Damn." He quickly thought back to what the Doctor had said. "No, wait, this is good." He decided.

"Captain?" Phabrizoe rose an eyebrow.

"Kazham's doctor seems to think that an emotional peak may force Trevia's memories back into the forefront." Olose explained. "He recommended that the wedding was the best time to cause such a thing."

"So, what is your plan?" Arcadia asked.

"We go crash a wedding." Olose grinned.

He suddenly spun around in shock.

"What is it?" Nadia inquired.

"Mithra. Six of them. Approaching us." Olose answered.

"That's prrrrretty cool." Suse laughed.

"Wait. There's a seventh behind them." Olose continued. "They're armed. At least the main six."

"That doesn't sound good." Phabrizoe muttered, subconsciously preparing a spell in his mind. Nadia placed her hand on her sword hilt.

A little figure panted behind the heavily armed mithran guards..

"No! Stop!" Pleaded Viliv.

"Sorrrrrry Prrrrincess, we're on official orders from the Queen. She wants them removed." Snapped the guard. Viliv cursed to herself.

"They haven't done anything!" Viliv tried to explain.

"One is a werewolf. Just be thankful that we haven't killed him on the spot." The guard told her. "That's only because you wouldn't keep quiet."

"Hey! You can't speak to me like that!" Viliv protested. The guards continued walking and she gave up, kicking the ground. "Stupid guarrrrrds." She said to herself. She wasn't entirely sure why she was bothering anyway, she had done a favour for the group already, she just had that feeling. A feeling that they were good people. Not the type of people that deserved to be kicked out of Kazham.

By the time the guards arrived at the tent, the group inside had already left, and were stood before them.

"Olose Sampson?" Inquired the guard. Olose just stared at her. She was slightly unnerved. "Urm. You are hearrrrrby exiled from Kazham to never rrrreturn." Olose took a step forwards, towards her.

"You have my friend." He growled.

"This law has been passed by the Queen herself. Any resistance and we shall deploy our full military might against you."

"Try." Olose threatened. The guard gulped.

"Um. This is an official order. Resistance is war." She explained. Olose kept his dead stare at her.

"Are you going to make me?" He asked.

"Olose. Stop!" Arcadia stepped between the two. "We shall leave." Arcadia shot Olose a stare, and he broke off into a laugh.  
"Bravest of the Kazham military there." He chuckled, slapping the guard on her shoulder. She blushed slightly, shaking with anger.

"Get out of Kazham and never rrrrreturn!" She snapped. Olose smiled.

"Of course." He replied.

"You resist us like that again, and we shall be forrrrced to destroy you." The guard warned.

"Yes. I'm sure." Olose responded casually. "Well, you've delivered your message. Turn around and leave." The guards grumbled to themselves, and walked away. Olose cursed to himself.

"What was all that about?" Arcadia cried as soon as the guards were gone.

"All what?" Olose asked.

"_That_." She stated. "That, threatening thing."

"Oh. Right." Olose laughed. "Well, I figured we're going to have to face those guards eventually. Those six are already unnerved. They'll spread stories. And those people who hear them will spread them. Fear will give us a big advantage."

"You're planning on fighting?" Nadia asked.

"No. But they are. You can tell. If we try to do anything, they'll try to fight us." Olose explained.

"So what do you suggest we do now?" Arcadia inquired.

"Get to the outskirts. The jungle outside can provide cover for us to set up some kind of hideout." Olose decided. "And then we wait for the wedding."

"We can't just wait outside. We need information." Phabrizoe decided.

"From who? We're all exiled." Olose sighed. "Never got a chance to ask why." He added thoughtfully.

"Maybe the werewolf thing?" Nadia suggested.

"That would make sense." Olose grumbled. "Not really fair they exiled you all as well."

"We're sympathetic to you. Could interfere with the wedding." Phabrizoe explained.

"I know that!" Olose sighed, rolling his eyes. "I was just saying it didn't seem particularly fair."

"I did not think they would do such a thing to us." Arcadia complained.

"You're status may protect us back on the mainland, but not here." Nadia pointed out.

"So, wherrrrre do we go now?" Suse asked.

"Out into the jungle, just outside of Kazham's walls. Like I said. Easy, they can't exile us from the jungle." Olose grinned.

"Are there not, bugs, and things, crawling around out there?" Arcadia said with a look of distaste on her face. This prompted Nadia to chuckle. Arcadia folded her arms angrily.

"Yeah, but I'd be more worried about the goblins and things." Olose told her.

"Goblins?" Arcadia repeated in fear.

"Why are there goblins everywhere we go in the world?" Sighed Phabrizoe.

"Well, we had best get moving before the guards return." Olose decided, beginning to take down the tents. The others nodded silently, used to following their captain's orders (except Arcadia, who watched anyway, not actually knowing how to take a tent down), and got to work.

Trevia was resting against her doorframe, watching a group of mithran guards march by. She felt Jeren wrap his arms around her from behind.

"What's wrong?" He asked, sensing her distraction.

"Are those guarrrrds going after that man? The werrrrewolf?" She inquired.

"Hopefully." Jeren replied. "I informed the Queen straight away, so she should be taking action."

"You did?" Trevia sounded slightly upset. "It's for the best, I guess."

"You're disappointed." Jeren guessed.

"It's just-" Trevia paused. "-Just that he was the only clue to who I was." Jeren let out a warm smile and hugged her tighter.

"Don't you understand. It doesn't matter who you were. You don't need to know. You didn't even live here in Kazham. So now, you can start over. A new life. With me." She turned around and rested her head on his shoulders. He ran his hands down her arms, feeling her muscles. They were large, and she was clearly very strong, which was somewhat hard to imagine considering how she acted in her amnesiac state.

"But I can't just walk away from an entirrrre life." She said tearfully.

"For all you need to know, it never existed. You can't remember it. The others have packed up and left. Why be so worried about it? Just enjoy what you have." Trevia looked up at Jeren, who smiled again. That warm smile that showed how much he cared.

"I guess I'll have too." Trevia grumbled, sounding unconvinced. Her head was pounding. She hated that shadowy feeling she had of the memories she couldn't reach. She hadn't even gotten an explanation as to why she felt that way. Her last memory was of her when she was twelve, and she was playing with Jeren in the street, throwing a ball to him. Yet she acted differently. Her matured brain meant she wasn't quite the twelve year old she was back then, yet she didn't have any of the memories, experience, or skills. She swayed a little, and let herself fall into Jeren's arms as he took her weight. She felt sleepy, so she shut her eyes, resting against his chest.

Viliv had gone four seconds before she realised she was outside of Kazham's gates without a bodyguard for the first time. She shivered. She wasn't a huntress like the others. Ironically, her position meant she could avoid the tradition of hunting. She hated combat, not really having the build for it and seeming to lack all natural talent for fighting anyway. She took a few more steps bravely, knowing she couldn't turn back, before she heard a grunt. She shut her eyes. There came another grunt. She managed to open one to see a goblin curiously eyeing her. She gulped, hard. It drew its dagger, and she became painfully aware that she had no weapon.

"Help." She squeaked, too frightened to muster a loud voice. The goblin began to scurry towards her. She turned to run, but tripped over her own tail in a fairly embarrassing manner. "HELP!" She managed to scream just before the goblin was on top of her. Just before it reached her, something took it out. It dropped down, dead. Viliv rose slowly, looking at it. A dagger had been hurled into its head. Sticky blood oozed out of the wound. "Ew." She commented.  
"You alright?" Came a voice from behind. Viliv turned to see the man was looking for. Olose Sampson. She had only seen him at a distance before, but recognised him easily. Especially since Suse and Nadia were by his side. Viliv silently nodded, before standing, dusting herself off.

"Thank you." She curtseyed awkwardly. "I'm-"  
"Viliv, I presume." Olose pre-empted her.

"Urm. Yes." Viliv answered. "Prrrrrincess of Kazham." She added with a smile.

"Nadia here mentioned you. I figured that was who you were." _Small and weak looking_, as Nadia had described her. "Urm, why are you here?"

"Because I wanted to help." She explained. "Good job I did of that." She added in a grumble. "I want to help you help your friend. She seems to mean a lot to you, and I underrrrstand that you can't leave her."

"Help us?" Olose pondered. "Can you find out all the information on the upcoming wedding and pass it to us?"

"Yes, shouldn't be too harrrrd." Viliv decided. "Is that all I can do?"

"For the moment. Probably shouldn't let anybody know, you may be a princess, but your parents are firmly against us interfering, you know?" Olose decided.

"I know." Viliv answered quietly. "I'll do my best not to be found out."

"Oh, and see if you can't visit the Doctor." Olose suggested. "He's also on our side, and might be able to give you something to help you hide from the creatures out here. I'd hate to be responsible for the Princess of Kazham's death." Viliv shivered visibly.

"Olose!" Arcadia scolded. "Do not say things like that!"

"No, it's alright. I'll see him." Viliv decided. "Well, I'll come back when I've found out all the plans."

"Fantastic." Olose grinned. "Thank you, Princess."

Lava bubbled within the fiery depths of Ifrit's Cauldron as the mysterious figure stared into it. Jacob approached from behind.

"You gave Jeren the sword. Do you think he can handle it?" The figure asked.

"No." Jacob replied bluntly. "But I'm sure the sword will come into play, making the murder of Olose a result of angry guards or an accident before long. I'll do it myself if I have too."

"Yes. Yes. Indeed." The figure snapped. "Just don't take too long. My plan will occur with precise timing. If Olose is not dead, he must be distracted sufficiently to be caught in our cleansing operation."

"Of course. And we must be exempt from it." Jacob figured.

"Yes. We must." The figure spoke slowly. "It's almost too impersonal, killing him this way. But I think I'll settle. To watch him die as he realises an entire civilisation is falling around him. To know that he is the very catalyst for that destruction. Oh, the irony. Olose Sampson, hero of the people, killed in a disaster that is his fault!"

"His fault?" Inquired Jacob.

"Do not fool yourself, my friend." The figure said quickly. "I am helping your cause, but do not care for it. You're goal shall be achieved purely as a side effect. Olose's death is my concern."

"As long as you don't try to betray me." Jacob warned.

"I wouldn't think of it." Laughed the figure, sinisterly, before turning back to the lava. Jacob paused, and walked away.


	49. Action

**CHAPTER 49**

**ACTION**

The tent door fluttered open, despite the fact that nobody seemed to be there. It moved as if a ghostly presence had lifted it up. The group within remained perfectly calm.

"Hey Viliv." Olose casually said.  
"Hey Viliv." Arcadia looked up from the book she was reading for a moment.

"Hey Viliv." Phabrizoe acknowledged.  
"Hey Viliv!" Suse beamed, looking at the blank space.

"Hey Viliv." Nadia decided to put in, mainly to conform to everybody else.

"Dammit." Viliv sighed aloud. "And I thought invisibility would be a neat trick."

"If it was the first time you played it on us." Olose told the invisible space where Viliv clearly was stood. "Or it would have been, if I couldn't smell you."

"Well, it's the safest way past the monsterrrrrs!" Viliv cried as she flickered into view. "Those invisibility potions the Doctor gave me arrrrre rrrrreally cool." She decided. It was the morning of the wedding, and she had been gathering details for the group throughout the week. Her trickery with the invisibility potion had kept her safe, but she always failed to sneak up on the group, which ruined any fun she would be having.

"I see you've got more info for us there." Olose observed.

"How could you tell?" She asked in surprise. She was still holding the papers behind her back. She had wanted to surprise them.

"You were invisible. The papers were not." Olose pointed out. "So hiding them behind your back didn't really work."

"Oh. So _that's _how you knew I was herrrrre." Viliv said in realisation.

"That or we saw the tent open." Laughed Nadia.

"Either way, I have some information in here you might need." Viliv explained.

"What else could we want? You got us maps, times, programmes, hell, even fake invitations, not that we can use them without some fake cat ears." Olose said with a shrug.

"These are different passes. _Catering _passes." She smiled.

"What?" Olose asked.

"Well, they've hired caterrrrrers from the mainland apparrrrrently, so that we can have all kinds of forrrrrreign dishes. Using the passes, they'll just think you're the caterers, unless they rrrrrecognise you, I guess."

"Sounds good." Olose decided.

"But you have to get therrrre beforrrre the wedding starts." Viliv told him. "Otherrrrrwise the real caterrrrrerrrrs will show up and expose you."

"That's okay. Once we're in, we should be able to disrupt things well enough." Olose explained.

"Right." Viliv paused. "I need to get back beforrrrre somebody rrrrrealises I'm here." She pulled out an invisibility potion. "Good luck." She drank it and disappeared. The tent door fluttered open again, and Olose could hear her footsteps as she ran off through the jungle. He turned back to crew.

He took a deep breath, looking at the passes.

"Right. Plan of action time." He decided. "Phabrizoe has already exposed an unguarded section of the wall. I shall go with Nadia, and we shall sneak in, over that wall, dropping down inside the town. We're the most obvious, so we'll be taking this course of action. But first, Arcadia and Suse, you take the roles of the chefs. You go in and enter nice and legally. Once you're in the kitchen, I want you to get to work."

"Cooking?" Suse said in joyful surprise.

"No. Not cooking!" Olose laughed. "I need you to start using what items you can and begin to build a chain. The hooks that hold the pots up and such. Should be simple."

"A chain?" Arcadia repeated curiously.

"Yes. A chain." Olose paused. "Phabrizoe? You've done some white magic training, right?"

"I sure have, Captain." Phabrizoe replied.

"You're job is to head to the mithran barracks, and cast a mute spell on it. Get in the same way we will, via the unguarded part of the wall." He explained.

"Mute the barracks? Why?" Phabrizoe asked curiously.

"Because all noise bounces off of the walls in some way, and if it's muted, no noise will get inside because the sound can't pass through it, right?" Olose explained. "You'll then meet up with Arcadia and Suse."

"With the chain?" Arcadia guessed.

"No. Lay the chain under the seats at the wedding. I have plans for that." Olose told her. "Phabrizoe, you then case paralyse on the door hinges, freezing the door."

"What do we do then?" Suse asked.

"You come to the point where me and Nadia are breaking in." Olose explained. "You meet up with us, and we help you up over the wall. You escape, and we drop down. The barracks is suitably out of action for as long as Phabrizoe's spells can last. We disrupt the wedding, trigger Trevia's memory, and escape over the wall while most of the guards are locked in their own barracks. Simple."

"The word simple has never been so badly misused." Phabrizoe commented to himself.

The two mithra guards shuffled on their feet, clearly bored, and missing the wedding. It was one of the greatest events in Kazham, and they were stuck on lousy guard duty. A hume and a mithra approached, and they jumped into a battle stance, readying their weapons.

"What are you doing?" Arcadia asked in shock. "What are they doing Suse?" She inquired, turning to her companion. "We come here, respected chefs, and they lower their weapons at us?" Arcadia was suddenly very glad she had taken those theatre lessons when she was younger. "Well, I never!"

"We're the chefs!" Suse cried shoving the passes under the guard's noses, ruining Arcadia's act slightly.

"I can see that." The mithran guard commented, resting her weapon on her shoulder. "Sorrrrry. Please. Go on in."

"Shouldn't therrrre be morrrre of you?" The second asked, slightly weary of outsiders.

"Yes. Yes. Of course! They are coming." Arcadia snapped. Luckily, her upper class accent made her sound like a fancy chef. "We must prepare the kitchen first. Do these people know nothing about cooking?" She sighed to Suse. Suse giggled.

"Nope!" She laughed.

"Very well. Go on in." The mithran guard sighed. "Really. Outsiders. A stuck up hume and a tailless mithra. Probably made her cut it off on the mainland to fit in morrrrre. I'm never going therrrrre, that I can tell you!" The second guard was only half listening, and rolled her eyes.

Phabrizoe landed in a roll, having jumped off of the wall. Olose gave a silent thumbs up, and he nodded, running as fast as he could. He arrived by the barracks, and went up on his tiptoes, seeing in through the window. The mithra inside were either asleep, or cleaning weapons. One was reading a magazine. None were too busy. He grinned, placing his hand on the wall, and began to chant quietly. For a moment, the entire barracks shone with light, before it faded. He began to sneak around towards the door.

"Hey! You! What arrrre you doing?" Came a cry. Phabrizoe turned, seeing a mithra gripping a spear. He smiled.

"And here I was thinking this was going to be easy." The guard lunged her spear at him, but he jumped, landing on her head. He jumped off, turning in the air, and firing a fireball. He landed as the guard fell forwards, smouldering on the ground. The explosion made quite a lot of noise, but the sound waves were absorbed by the muted barracks before they could travel inside. He shrugged. "Okay, so this _is _easy." He grabbed the guard and pulled her back, hiding her in a bush. "Now, don't you go waking up and ruining anything." He said to the mithra, who was soundly unconscious. "I suppose I should be on the safe side." He began to cast a special spell he had taught himself. The mithra's body shimmered and he smiled at his handiwork. A timed version of the spell bind. It would activate just when she woke up. He added silence for good measure. She'd be stuck and unable to call for help. Perfect.

The little tarutaru scampered to the door, and placed a hand on the hinges. He cast paralyse quickly, and watched as the hinges turned a dull green. Nobody was getting out of that door short of ramming it down.

Arcadia fiddled desperately with the hooks, weaving them into a long chain.

"I have no idea what Olose wants with this thing." She commented to herself. Pots lay everywhere, the two had been using the hoops that held the pots hanging from the ceiling to make the chain, and reinforced it with a length of rope.

"What's going on in herrrre?" Came a voice as one of the guards came in to check. The second, more suspicious one from the doorway.

"Please! No interruptions! This is a very delicate procedure!" Arcadia snapped, trying to still sound like an angry chef.

"You're cooks, not engineers. What arrrre you doing?" Growled the guard.

"Let me show you!" Beamed Suse, walking up and taking the guard by the hand. She quickly swivelled around, wrapping the guards arm tightly behind herself. She forced it upwards into a lock and the guard dropped her spear. Suse pushed the guard forwards, and she stumbled, hitting against the counter. She turned around just as Suse leapt into the air, kicking the guard to the head and knocking her out.

"Where did you learn that?" Arcadia gasped.

"Olose taught me." Suse said proudly.

"Remind me to have a word with him when we get out of here." Arcadia grumbled. "You had better hide that body before somebody sees it." Suse got to work as Arcadia continued to construct the chain.

Olose looked at the pocket watch Arcadia had provided him with.

"Time's up. Let's move." He told Nadia, and the two began to climb the wall. Outside, the defensive spikes made for good footing. Ironically, it was _inside _the town that the wall was near impossible to climb. Olose instantly spotted Phabrizoe, who jumped with amazing agility to Olose's hand. Olose pulled him up and lowered him down to the other side. "Good job." He commented.

"No problem Captain." Phabrizoe saluted, and ran. Arcadia and Suse quickly emerged from some bushes, and ran to the edge of the wall. Arcadia rose her hand, and Olose took it. She almost slipped away from him, and struggled to get over the wall, but Olose managed to help her. Suse jumped up, and Nadia hauled her over. Olose and Nadia looked at each other.

"Let's go." They said together, dropping down.

Trevia stood in the long flowing bridal dress she had been provided. Not white like in the rest of Vana'diel, instead her bridal dress was made of natural grasses and flowers from the jungle. Jeren stood opposite her in armour. A marriage was the one time a male mithra would be allowed to dress as a warrior as a vow to fight and protect his bond. Arcadia took his hand as he took hers.

"I do." She spoke, finishing from what the mithran priest had just asked her. Her heart was beating faster than she thought possible. She was full of all kinds of emotions. Love. She loved Jeren. And she was so happy to be marrying him. Horror. She was finally leaving her life behind. Kissing goodbye to all of her memories lost and starting over. A new life, without even knowing what the old one was.

"Then I pronounce you husband and wife." The priest smiled.

"Not if I can help it!" Olose cried from the back of the crowd. He had been hoping to arrive at the 'if anybody here has any objections, please speak now' bit, but had clearly missed it. He didn't even know if it existed in Kazham tradition.  
"What the-" Jeren began.

"Olose?" Whispered Trevia as her mind exploded, seeing him. The guards drew their weapons quickly.

"Destrrrroy him!" Ordered their captain, the same leader of the guard that Olose had been exiled by.

"Nadia?" Nadia ran to Olose's side, drawing her sword. Olose drew his. The guards closed in, and Olose engaged them. Nadia attacked the ones coming in to the left while Olose was preoccupied with the ones attacking from the right. Trevia watched in horror. Her mind felt like it was on fire. So many emotions, and then, just for a moment, a spark of familiarity. She dropped down in pain, clutching at her skull.

"_TREVIA!"_ She heard Jeren yell as if it was a dream.

Olose ducked under a swiping spear and struck upwards, snapping it in half. He beat one mithra with the hilt of his sword, knocking her unconscious. He kicked another and she stumbled back. A third ran at him, but he let out a powerful growl, and she stumbled away, frightened.

Nadia's luck was just as good. She was making short work of her attackers, keeping them at bay with fast single handed sword work. The guards turned to retreat, running back to their captain.

"No! Dammit! Where's our reinforcements?" Snapped the Captain.

The mithra in the barracks remained blissfully unaware of the alarm ringing. They continued about their activities within, and none had so much as approached the door.

"You lot! Distract them!" The Captain ordered. "I'll go and get our own reinforcements." She ran off as the guards ran in for a second offensive. Olose and Nadia spun their blades and engaged them.

Jeren stared in horror as Trevia curled up into the foetal position, clawing at her own brain. She felt as if it was on fire.

"_So it's not coincidence. The name."_

"_I'll say. Last time we met you tried to kill me. Here to finish the job?" _

"_No. Last time I was swung out of a window by my tail. I saw that as a defeat. My employerrrr believes Olose Sampson is dead, and would not employ me were he still alive due to my previous failurrrre, I have no desirrrrre to kill you." _

Olose beat back the final guard, watching her collapse.

"No problem." He grinned. Jeren's eyes went wide, drawing his sword from his armour. For the marriage he was allowed to wear one, and he had made sure it was the silver blade.

"You fiend! What've you done to her?" He screamed, running and swinging the blade. Olose blocked it easily, and stepped to the side.

"I'm doing what is right!" He told Jeren. "Her memories have been stolen and I'm letting her live again!"

"You're killing a sweet and innocent girl!" Jeren sobbed, stabbing forwards.

"You did that the day you tried to force her to marry you and caused her to run." Olose replied, parrying. The two blades swung at each other again.

"Well, I made up for my mistakes. And now you're redoing them!" Jeren cried.

"You're murdering a real person! Trevia is real, whether you like who she became or not! By destroying her memories you're destroying her identity!"

"_This is goodbye then. Good luck, and with any luck we'll see each other again soon." _

"_Goodbye, Captain. I feel I was betterrrr off knowing you. Than I was beforrrre."_

Olose pulled Jeren's blade down with his own, noticing the dangerous silver material it was made of.

"You're no better!" Jeren spat. "You're destroying who she's become!"

"I'm giving her the right to make a choice!" Olose replied. The two spun their blades in and they crashed against each other. Olose punched forwards, upper cutting Jeren. He crashed down, but managed to get back up quickly as Olose advanced.

"_Trevs?" _

"_Yes?"_

"_Urm, I meant Trevia. Pesky 'ia' bit, always evades me. Urm, we're approaching Kazham. I don't expect you to come up on deck, not yet, but I thought I'd tell you."_

"_Thanks."_

Jeren swung in his blade and Olose ducked underneath it. He brought it back, and slashed Olose in the leg. Olose screamed as smoke rose and the silver burned his flesh. He dropped to one knee.

"So much for the mighty Captain!" He laughed.

"JEREN! NO!" Came a desperate scream.  
"Trevia?" Jeren asked in shock. Trevia ran to his side.

"Don't hurrrt him." She growled. It was a warning, not a request.

"What?" Jeren asked. Trevia suddenly leapt into the air, round housing Jeren's hand and knocking the blade flying.

"Captain. I need to borrow this." She grabbed Olose's sword, and cut off her dress, just leaving her top and bare legs. "That's betterrrrr."

"Glad to have you back Trevia." Olose smiled.

"Glad to be back Captain." Trevia grinned. "Jerrrren." She turned to him. He looked up with teary eyes. Trevia's heart sank. Her memories were back, but she remembered how Jeren had been to her. What he had done. Yet how he had comforted her. "Come with us." She decided.

"What?" He gasped.

"Now or neverrrr. Decide." She stated simply.

"Heads up!" Nadia pointed to the advancing guards. Olose noticed that the door to the barracks in the distance had been broken, no doubt by the Captain. He grinned.

"Planned for." He answered, shaking off the pain in his leg. He dove under the chairs and pulled out the long chain. He threw it to Nadia. "You ready?"

"Ready." Nadia smiled.

"CHARGE!" Olose cried.

The two ran, flinging the chain out in a line. They ran into the guards, knocking the front row over. Nadia threw her end of the chain to Olose, and Olose pulled it tight, locking the guards in a group. He quickly wrapped it around and tied it tight, leaving the guards tied to each other in a helpless group. They grunted and cursed uselessly. Olose laughed.

"Nice job Captain." Nadia smiled.

"I love it when a plan comes together." Olose grinned, before he started hitting the guards. "We still need the chain to get over the wall." He explained. "Knock 'em unconscious, and then we can escape."

"I'll come." Jeren decided. "Trevia. I'm-" Trevia turned to him.  
"Save it. You have one chance. You don't like who I am, I know. You used that potion to change me. But I realised how much you carrrrre. You have one chance. If you trrrruly love me, then you'll love who I am, and come with me. If not, stay herrrre and find yourrrrself another brrrride."

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Jeren protested. Trevia smiled.

"I'm glad to hear it." She said almost too softly to hear. Olose unravelled the chain as the guards fell down unconscious.

"There. Done." He smiled. "Now we need to get to the wall and use the chain to climb over it. Hopefully Phabz has prepped the rowing boat for our escape." There was a sudden explosion and everybody fell silent, turning towards the mighty Ifrit's Cauldron in the distance. They paused. Plumes of black smoke rose from it.

"Sweet Altana." Whispered Nadia.  
"That's the Cauldron!" Jeren cried. "It's erupted!"

"That lava flow will destroy all of Kazham!" Nadia realised.

"There's no time to lose! Trevs, your with me! Nadia, take Jeren back to the shore and get me Phabrizoe. We're going to need him!" Olose looked up at the burning volcano. One thought ran through his mind. _This can't be coincidence. _"We've got a town to save." He said with determination.

**Author's Note: Yep, there goes hope of a chapter without a note. Olose says a line from a famous TV show in this one, I'm sure somebody will spot it. This is a bit longer than usual by accident, I kind of couldn't keep it short and have all the events I wanted occur. I decided to skip to the climax of this story arc because I knew I couldn't drag it out and let it sag. Unfortunately that means Trevia and Jeren get thrust to the backburner despite the fact I said I'd try to do more of their interaction. I can't help but worry that this chapter will make the story arc seem rushed, but it's the best I could do. I quite like the chapter on its own though, I think it's fun to see the crew working together and pulling this plan off.**

**Oh, and I regretted the one word naming system for chapters this time. I really wanted to call it 'Mission: Impossible'. I was listening to that theme while writing it. It suited quite well! At least, it was funny.**

**I also remembered I mentioned getting my exam results, but never said what they were when I did get 'em. Doubt anybody cares, but just to say they were good enough for me to go to University. Which means I'm now very scared about going away to live on my own. Especially to live on my own with possibly no time to write!**

**And my computer is still being dodgy, but seems to be fixed temporarily, but I still can't guarantee I'll find time to write chapters if it keeps getting opened to be repaired. I'll do my best though! I'm really sorry if I do miss an update though!**


	50. Save

**Author's Note: Whoa. Here it is. The big 50. 50 chapters! That's quite a lot. Sometimes I think I have too much free time. This is the end of the current storyline also, I didn't want to drag it out and make it any crappier than my writing already is, so I ended it. But it was pretty much at its end anyway. It's a little longer than most, though not as long as yesterdays. I guess that makes it a special '50 chapters' edition or something.**

**Oh, and thanks Dark Axem for the congratulations! I'm still worried about university, even though I know lots of people love it, since it'll be me pretty much starting a new life in a new city I've only ever been to once for an interview and so on. But I'm sure I'll adapt eventually. And I'll try to keep writing, but I very much doubt I'll be able to do it anywhere near as frequently as once a day!**

**I don't leave for university until the 26th September anyway, so I have plenty of time to finish this story at least, and maybe even do another shorter one.**

**CHAPTER 50**

**SAVE**

"Wait!" Jeren cried after Olose.  
"What is it? We're kind of short on time here." Olose said quickly.

"I know who's behind this. His name is Jacob. It has to be him." Jeren told him.

"Get explaining, and fast!" Olose snapped, looking at the now visible orange lava rocketing towards the town.

"He's a protestor. For male rights. He said he wanted to help me get married so that I could support his protests with the status of being a married man. I mean, I was all for it. It makes sense. We aren't really treated like equals." Jeren explained.

"Time is lacking here. Get to the point." Olose was clearly worried.

"Well, I realised that a wedding is the only ceremony where every huntress, every female, is ordered to be recalled to the town. If that lava flow hits now, the entire mithran race will be destroyed. Leaving only Jacob and any males he felt to protect."

"What?" Trevia screamed. "That-"

"The mithra in Windurst will survive, but this entire place will be eliminated." Nadia said thoughtfully.

"Dammit!" Olose cursed. "If he managed to cause the volcano to erupt then he's powerful. Right. We go with the same plan! I'll handle Jacob! Nadia, Jeren, get back to the boat and get me Phabz. Then get back here and help evacuate the town. You might need to get some boats over from the _Destiny. _If it comes to that, then we're already dead, so get the hell out of here. Now, move it!"

Olose and Trevia quickly darted through the jungle, leaping over trees and stones. They could already feel the heat approaching them.

"Captain?" Trevia cried. "What arrrre we going to do?"

"I'm working on it!" Olose called back. "Where the hell is Phabrizoe?"  
"His ice powers won't keep that lava at bay for long." Trevia observed.

"It might buy us some time. We need to get up the mountain and stop the lava flow." Olose decided.

"How arrre we going to do that?" Trevia cried.

"Maybe this Jacob guy can stop it." Olose mused.

"This isn't a time for maybes!" Trevia screamed. "The whole town is about to be destroyed!"

"It's our only shot." Olose explained.

"Captain!" Phabrizoe ran to Olose's side. "What's going on?"  
"That dammed volcano has erupted!" Olose told him. "We need to stop the lava flow before it wipes out the whole of Kazham."

"Stop it? But how?" Phabrizoe cried.

"Ice." Olose answered. "Start casting!"

"I can't cast magic _that _powerful!" Phabirzoe screamed. "That lava flow will utterly wipe us out."

"Wait. You can cast a water spell, right?" Olose guessed.

"Yeah." Phabrizoe answered. "But that's nowhere near powerful enough."

"Doesn't a water spell work by summoning the water, then you manipulating it into an attack?" Olose asked.

"Yes, but that's not going to help." Phabrizoe muttered.

"Then can't you manipulate water?" Olose asked, pointing to the sea.

"Never heard of it being done before." Phabrizoe told him. "But there's a first time for everything. My ability to cast will fade fast, you won't have long."

"We'll be quick." Olose told him. "C'mon!" He gestured to Trevia and the two ran through the jungle. Phabrizoe turned around, heading back towards the sea.

Trevia and Olose could feel the burning heat approaching them. An orange glow filled the jungle. Trees were collapsing and burning before them.

"We didn't think this thrrrrough." Trevia decided. "How are we supposed to get past the lava?"

"Tree tops! Go!" Olose quickly scaled the nearest tree.

"But they're burning!" Trevia protested, following him. Olose paused, looking out across the flowing lava.  
"This isn't going to work." He decided, perched on the tree top. He turned to Trevia, looking at her. She had a sword and shield strapped to her back that she had picked up off of a fallen guard. Olose looked at his chain and smiled.

Phabrizoe ran down to the sea, and looked at it. He gulped. Manipulating the elements was different from normal casting. He had no idea how he was going to do it. He began to concentrate, trying to feel the magical energies around him. The water began to bubble.

"Come on." He said to himself through gritted teeth. "Come on!" The water suddenly erupted like a volcano of its own and Phabrizoe directed the gushing water over his head as it flew through the air.

"This is never going to work!" Trevia commented sceptically.

"It's that, or see Kazham be destroyed." Olose replied.

"Oh, I hate you sometimes." She grumbled. Olose jumped onto the shield like a surfboard, and Trevia got on next to him. He swung the chain and spun it out to the nearest tree. He began to pull on the chain, pulling the shield closer to it. The shield shot across the lava like a boat, the metal getting hotter and hotter. "Ow! Ow!" Trevia whined in a surprisingly childish way.

"Get on my back!" Olose ordered.

"What?" Trevia asked in surprise, wincing as her feet burnt.

"I can regenerate. You can't! On my back! Now!" Trevia did so without a second thought. They reached the tree and Olose threw the chain so that it wrapped around the next one, little more than a burning husk. He pulled himself towards it, and the burning shield skied across the lava.

Steam rocketed up as the spraying water splashed against the lava. Phabrizoe was sweating from the effort of manipulating that much water and the heat. But he couldn't give in. He knew he couldn't. He refocused his power and doubled the amount of water he was calling from the sea. The lava flow began to dry up, turning to crust. More lava continued to splash against it as it kept coming, seeping up over the wall of now cooled lava. Phabrizoe gulped. This wasn't going to be easy.

Jacob let out a triumphant laugh deep within the overflowing Ifrit's Cauldron, safe on overlooking rocks.

"Yes! Burn! BURN!" He roared, a small and elite group of male followers that had pledged themselves to him by his side. "We are no longer the pathetic repressed souls you made us! Today we strike out!"

"You fool." Commented the mysterious figure beside him. "He is coming. You failed to kill him!" The figure had already spotted Olose and Trevia approaching them on their shield mechanism.

"I will finish him this time, rest assured." Growled Jacob.

"No. You have failed." The figure stated. "I gave you everything. All you had to do was kill Olose Sampson. You failed. Until we meet again." The figure turned and left, much to Jacob's surprise.

"Bah! What does he know?" Grumbled Jacob. "Attack! Destroy him!" Jacob ordered his followers.

Jacob's male mithra followers ran down the rocks, coming to the edge of the lava. They began to fire arrows which painfully thudded into Olose.

"Trevs!" He cried. "Deal with them!"

"With what? I don't have a bow!" She replied frantically from Olose's back.

"Think of something!" Olose yelled. Trevia shrugged, hurling her sword expertly. It spun in circles like a disk, approaching the feet of the mithra. It slashed into them and many toppled into the lava. Only two remained. She grinned.

"How was that?" She asked. Another arrow thudded into Olose.

"Not bad." He winced. "How about this?" He threw the chain, and it wrapped around one of the mithra. He pulled it and watched as the poor victim fell into the lava. He lifted the chain out and spun it once more, spraying lava over the last victim who plummeted to his doom.

"Nice. Now what?" Trevia cried.

"Hold on tight!" Olose ordered. He crouched, and jumped, knocking the shield away. His mighty leg muscles gave him enough power to be propelled through the air in a most unnatural looking way. He landed on the rocks with a stumble, his feet practically on fire. "We are _never _doing that again!" He growled, his shoes entirely burnt off and his feet little more than bone. Skin quickly regenerated over them and he sighed as it did so.

"I agrrrrree." Trevia panted.

"Now come on, we have a town to save!" Olose gestured up the rocky path. Trevia sighed and followed.

Jacob stood with his arms out, the lava erupting around him.

"Jacob!" Olose bellowed through the heat. Jacob turned slowly.

"Ah. The legendary Olose Sampson. I'm glad you could make it. There's something so impersonal about you dieing so far below." He blasted a flow of lava at Olose and he dove aside, the lava harmlessly splashing down the rocks. Trevia was safely stood to the side. "My friend wanted to see you die. He wanted to kill you. A pathetic lack of vision. He helped me achieve everything here just so that you would die."  
"That explains the silver sword and the change in Trevia's scent." Olose commented to himself. Trevia sniffed herself curiously. "But who? Who was your friend?"  
"He had no name and needed no name. Know that only he assisted me in my triumph! My triumph over Kazham and over the pathetic females that oppressed me so!"

"You're scheme is over." Olose spat. "You're friends are already dead. We saw to that. You're all that left."

"It doesn't matter. I am free!" Jacob roared.

"Not for long! Stop this!" Olose warned.

"No! Never!" Jacob cried in return. "Kazham will burn. I sense your pathetic black mage friend, trying to stop the lava flow. He is inexperienced and weak compared to me. I can manipulate the elements to perfection, as you're seeing now. He'll tire, and die, and my lava flow will crush him."

"Jacob!" Trevia growled, stepping forwards. "I have a scorrrrre to settle with you! You stole my memorrrries, and almost stole my life."

"Silence woman. You have no power over me. Not anymore." Jacob laughed.

"What's the matter? Scarrred of me?" Trevia taunted. Jacob lowered his arms.

"Fear you? Never!" Jacob laughed.

"Prove it." Trevia began to walk around him, pacing.

"What are you doing?" Olose asked. Trevia ignored him.

"Jacob. I challenge you to a duel." She said calmly. "My skill against yours. Stop the lava flow, and we'll fight."

"Stop it?" Jacob asked curiously.

"Yes. Then, if you are victorious, you can begin it again, and finish off Kazham. If you loose, then you will be dead." She smirked slightly. "Male versus female. Of course, I understand if you aren't up for the challenge."

"You're unarmed. You will be no match." Jacob scoffed.

"I don't need a weapon!" Trevia shot back.

"Very well. I accept." The lava around the two noticeably stopped flowing.

"Stand back Olose." Trevia told her captain.  
"What are you doing?" He whispered. "I'm immortal, I can take this guy. You can't."

"Show a little confidence." Trevia sighed.

"Ready?" Jacob laughed.

"Ready." Trevia answered, and the two shot at each other.

Phabrizoe instantly felt the strain release as the lava flow began to yield. This was his chance. He could stop it. He redoubled his efforts, sending more water at the flowing lava, cooling it into a wall. Using the water, no longer having to worry about the lava flow constantly being renewed, he made a blockade of cooled lava that redirected the lava that was still flowing around Kazham and into the water. Without the flow being renewed, he knew it would expire in time. Phabrizoe collapsed from exhaustion as soon as he finished his work.

Trevia screamed as a lightning bolt hit her and she flew back across the rocks, crashing down just on the edge. She got up angrily.

"You're no match for a powerful black mage." Jacob cackled.

"We'll see." Growled Trevia. She went to leap at him again and he blasted a fireball. She had predicted this however, and shifted her weight to the left, allowing the fireball to sail past her perfectly. She grabbed a rock and threw it at Jacob, distracting him long enough for her to run in on the attack. Her ninja training paid off and she was in on the offensive quickly. She struck him to the jaw and he fell backwards. She jumped as he was falling and kicked him, hard. He crashed down on the rocks. Trevia ran in, but the rocks before her erupted as he cast a stone spell. She fell backwards as he scrambled up and hurled a lightning bolt. She ducked under it just in time and dove at him again. She tackled him and quickly struck him to the nose, shattering it. She launched a strike into one of his arms, hitting it hard enough to disable it for a moment and then hit him with her plan across the face. He was stunned at her speed and sprawled in pain. Trevia hauled him up and kicked him in the chest. He stumbled back to the edge of the rocks, losing his balance.

"No." He managed to mumble.

"I win." She grinned.

"I was going to free us all." He spluttered, before falling into the flames. Trevia turned away as she heard his deafening gurgled scream. Olose managed a smile.

"Way to go, Trevs." He told her. "Remind me to never piss you off."

"Will do Captain." Trevia laughed. "Now, how are we going to get down?" Olose's face fell.

It was a week later when the _Destiny II _had finally departed from Kazham, the clean up operations being over and Olose and his crew being thanked in general. Jeren was slumped on the deck, looking the waves crash by as Trevia approached him.

"You alright?" She asked softly.

"Yeah. Fine." He sighed. "I was just thinking about you. Urm, the other you."

"We'rrrre one and the same." Trevia told him with a smile.

"No. The other you was scared, innocent and sweet. But she was so afraid that you'd replace her, that you would destroy her." Jeren explained. "And I guess that happened. I guess I failed to protect her."

"No you didn't. She's still herrrre. Inside me." Trevia explained. "She always was. She's just the base for what the rest of my life was built on."

"If she's in there, what does she think of me now?" Jeren asked with a shrug.

"She's mad at you. Very mad." Trevia answered, almost playfully. "For causing this whole mess. But at the same time she's really grateful. She's really thankful you helped her through it." Trevia let out a long awkward pause. "I'm really thankful you helped me through it."  
"What happens now?" Jeren sighed.

"Well, Olose let you join the crew. That means we wait until we get a job." Trevia explained. "You neverrrrr know, perrrrhaps with some time together, we'll grow closerrrr, and one day we'll-"

"Trevia. There's no need to lie. If you don't feel what I do, then tell me." Trevia stayed quiet. "Well?" She still remained silent. "You gonna tell me?"

"What, do you want me to lie?" She asked. Jeren's face suddenly exploded into a smile. "Hey! Don't get ahead of yourrrrself. I'm a little confused. I'm- urm, not good with emotions."

"I noticed." Laughed Jeren. "You can have all the time you want, I'll wait." He paused, looking out to the sea. "You know, I've never left Kazham. Can't wait to see the rest of the world."

"It's not that interrrrresting." Trevia laughed. "But there's this great bar in Seblina."

"If that's not worth leaving Kazham for, I don't know what is." Jeren joked, prompting Trevia to emit a slight giggle. She quickly straightened her features again, trying to appear stoic and serious. She failed.

Arcadia walked up behind Olose and placed a hand on his shoulder. He was at the wheel, but watching Jeren and Trevia.

"Sweet, is it not?" Arcadia said lightly.

"Yeah. They'll probably settle down and have a family." Olose observed. "They'll be lots of little Trevia's running around soon. Scary thought." Arcadia laughed, wrapping her arms around Olose.

"I think I shall stay at home next time we go anywhere." She decided.

"Didn't make much of a honeymoon, I have to admit." Olose shrugged. "I promise. When we get back to the mainland, we'll go somewhere nice. Wherever you choose!"

"Home." Arcadia laughed wearingly. "I want a rest. Besides, I shall be with you." Olose smiled.

"And I'll be with you. Nowhere better to be." He grinned.

"Olose. I have some news." She sighed. "Some frightening and wonderful news." Olose face for a moment lit up. He saw where this was going. "I talked to the Doctor in Kazham."

"You did?" Olose asked excitedly.

"Yes. And I'm pregnant." She finished. Olose beamed a smile like none Arcadia had seen.

"That's wonderful!" He cried, and Arcadia truly believed him. "Amazing!" He laughed. "I'm going to be a father! We'll have our own baby son!"

"Daughter." Arcadia corrected.

"Well, we'll see." Olose laughed. Arcadia's face suddenly fell more serious. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Our child with your blood." She commented weakly. "Do you think she'll-"

"I'm sure _he'll _be fine." Olose smiled. "Besides, I'm a werewolf, and can control myself. Even if our child was born a werewolf, I could train him over the years to resist the transformation, so that when it kicks in, he'll be fine."

"I hope so. I hope _she _will be alright." Olose laughed slightly at the constant pronoun changing. "I am sure she will be. With you for a father, how can any harm come to her?"

"I swear to Altana, none will ever come to my child." Olose told Arcadia.

"Exactly." Arcadia said softly, falling into Olose's arms.

The _Destiny II _cruised off into the night.

**Author's Note: Sorry for the crappy romantic dialogue at the end, I'm still really bad at that. And for Jacob's stereotypical villain dialogue, I know there's a lot of bad guys who speak like that, so I understand people can get fed up with it.**

**As for Arcadia being pregnant, that's obviously going to become a plot issue. And their arguing over gender is just supposed to be playful, but is mainly because I didn't want to refer to a baby as 'it', so had them bicker over what gender the child will be.**

**Anyway. This means a new storyline starts tomorrow. Which should be interesting. It's actually kind of the beginning of the end. Probably only about ten chapters or so left, which is a bit of a shame, but I kind of feel this story should be wrapped up soon.**


	51. Message

**Author's Note: New storyline. I've had this one planned for a while, but now I've come to it, it's very hard to write, and to be honest, a bit crap. It's up late and shorter than usual due to me just getting Guild Wars and being addicted to it. Sorry about that! But it's also more than a little crap, I've found it very hard to write, and am now dreading the rest of this storyline. Which luckily shouldn't be very long before it leads into the climax. Anyway, sorry about the crappyness! I'll try and improve the next chapters, honest!**

**CHAPTER 51**

**MESSAGE**

Arcadia held the letter and looked at it sadly. Her stomach was large and swollen. Eight months had passed since the events in Kazham, and she was now heavily pregnant. Olose stood behind her, and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"What is it?" He asked softly.

"It is a letter from Princess Astra." Arcadia replied. "King Richard is dead." Olose paused.

"Aw. I'm sorry to hear that." He managed to say.

"It means Astra is to be crowned the new Queen. Apparently she is very scared. She wants to see me." Arcadia explained.

"Oh no. Not like that." Olose began. "If anything happens, and knowing us, it most certainly will do, we could lose our child." Arcadia looked at him like an angry child.

"Olose. It is just a trip to San d'Oria." She stated.

"That's what it was the last time!" Olose pointed out. "And 'just a trip to Kazham'. Need I remind you what happened there?"

"But she is clearly feeling very alone at the moment, and I am her friend. She could not possibly leave San d'Oria at a time like this. I must see her." Arcadia told Olose.

"Why don't I go?" Olose suggested. "Sure, you know her better than me, but I can still be there for her. And you can communicate by linkshell. It's better than risking the child, right?" Arcadia paused, slightly frustrated.

"Yes. I suppose so." She sighed.

"Great." He smiled. "Look, I'm sorry Arcadia. But if anything happens to you, or the baby, I could never forgive myself."

"I understand. I just feel so helpless. I cannot do anything or go anywhere." Arcadia muttered.

"Yeah, but it'll be worth it." Olose said gently. "Anyway, keep in contact with me, and I'll keep in contact with you. Astra is bound to want to talk to you."

"Be careful, Olose." Sighed Arcadia.

"Aren't I always?" He grinned.

"No. That is the problem." Arcadia grumbled.

Olose ran out to the chocobo stables, and swung to his personal chocobo Arcadia had provided, quite a large bird that sat there obediently waiting for him. He could run just as fast in his werewolf form, but that was tiring and he didn't want too.

"Alright Pal." He said cheerfully. 'Pal' wasn't the Chocobo's real name, but Olose called it that all the time anyway.

"Wark!" The chocobo replied.

"Yeah, we're going for a ride." Olose told it, climbing on.

"Kweh?" The chocobo questioned.

"San d'Oria. Again." Olose sighed, knowing what the chocobo was asking. "Just for once, I'd like to go to Windurst instead."

"Kweh?" The chocobo cried.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad." Olose sighed. "Now get a move on, I ain't got all day." He slammed his heels down, and the chocobo let out a loud wark, speeding out of the stables.

The sun was setting and it was late afternoon by the time San d'Oria fell into view. Olose was almost asleep on the back of his loyal steed.

"This was more fun when it was just me and Arcadia, Pal." He told the chocobo sleepily.

"Wark?" The chocobo inquired.

"Nah, you're fun too." Olose replied. "Just not quite in the same way." He added thoughtfully.

"Kweh." The chocobo sounded disappointed.

"I'm not even gonna try and figure that one out." Olose muttered to himself.

"Halt!" Came a voice from one of the black clad Royal Guards. "Please identify your-" He paused. "Olose? Olose Sampson?"

"Dartian!" Olose exclaimed happily. "How've you been?"

"Not too good, old friend." Dartian admitted. "With the King dead, we're having a tough time keeping the city under control. That's why I'm trying to regulate who comes in and out."

"Keep it under control?" Olose said quickly. "What's the problem?"

"There's a revolutionary group. They're rebelling. They don't think Princess Astra is fit to take the throne." Dartian sighed. "They say she lacks the experience to lead a kingdom, which is true, in a sense. They also say she's too weak. The illness she suffered from has left her very physically deprived, and that means she's not going to be leading us into any wars like King Richard did."

"You almost sound as if you support them." Olose said curiously.

"Oh heavens no!" Dartian cried. "Just been listening to them spout their propaganda far too long. Astra's really upset about it."

"I can imagine. Is that why she asked to see Arcadia?" Olose asked.  
"Yeah. I mean, she's one of her only real friends, who don't just befriend her because she's a princess." Dartian paused curiously. "Where is she anyway?"

"Pregnant, so at home resting. I agreed to take her place. Hope Astra doesn't mind." Olose explained.

"Pregnant? Congratulations." Dartian smiled. "I had no idea!"

"Yeah, sorry we haven't been in contact. Things have been a little hectic." Olose paused for a smirk. "Would you believe Trevia has a boyfriend now?"

"_Trevia_? You've got to be kidding me!" Dartian laughed.

"'fraid not." Olose grinned. "Long story behind that one. Let's just say you should never visit Kazham." Dartian chuckled, only able to imagine the kinds of trouble his old friend had found himself in.

"Well, I suppose you had better go and see the Princess." Dartian decided. "She's in the chateau. Or she was at last check."

"I'll get right on it. We'll have to catch up later." Olose decided.

"I'll buy us a round of drinks. Santia is around too. She'll want to see you." Dartian paused. "Did you know we're engaged now?"

"You and Santia?" Olose cried in disbelief. "I really should visit more often! Congratulations!"

"You're one to speak, Mr I'm Going To Be A Father." Dartian shot playfully. "Anyway, I'll see you later, I have guard duty to do, and Astra is doubtlessly anxious to meet you."

"I can imagine. Well, until later Dartian." Olose waved, walking into the city. Dartian turned back to his post, smiling at the memories of his friend.

Olose walked into the throne room briskly, and Astra turned to him immediately. He noticed how she was already stood up. He guessed she had been sat down for enough of her life, so was making up for lost time.

"Sir Sampson!" She exclaimed, slightly caught off guard.

"I forgot I was knighted." Olose said thoughtfully. "Princess Astra, it is an honour to see you again. You look more beautiful than ever."

"Please don't talk like that. It's seriously weird." Astra laughed.

"Oh good. I didn't know how long I could keep it up." Olose smirked. "You are looking well though. How're you coping?"

"Urm. It's difficult. Father did a lot for me in his final days, and now he's gone." Astra gulped. "And now they're causing trouble. Everybody. They say I'm unfit to rule. They say-" She broke down into tears as Olose hugged her.

"Don't worry. You'll be a fine ruler." He said gently.

"Where is Arcadia?" Astra asked, clearly distressed.

"Back in Tavnazia. I'm sorry Princess, but she's pregnant. I didn't want her risking the journey." Astra looked up at Olose sadly.

"It's happy news. But I'm sad." She stated. "I'm sorry. I really wanted to see her."  
"I have this linkshell." Olose paused it to her. "You can talk to her at least. She wanted to come. It's my fault. I told her not too."

"Oh." Astra stated. "I understand." Astra decided to sit down, obviously still finding the act of sitting in an ordinary chair awkward as she fidgeted quite a bit. "What do you think we should do?"

"You tried to meet with this leader? The guy who's behind all this outcry against you?" Olose asked.

"Dartian tried to arrange it. But he couldn't find him. He seems to have no name. No identity. Nobody knows who he is."

"_He had no name and needed no name. Know that only he assisted me in my triumph!"_

Jacob's words suddenly flashed across Olose's mind. He looked up slowly.

"Worrying. I think I may have encountered this guy before." Olose explained. "Somebody without identity plotted to destroy the whole of Kazham, and very nearly succeeded." He added.

"Do you think it could be coincidence?" Astra asked, sounding hopeful.

"I doubt it." Olose paused thoughtfully. "It's odd. Last time, it seemed he was trying to target me specifically. Kill me. I have no idea why, but everything was geared towards killing me."

"_My friend wanted to see you die. He wanted to kill you. A pathetic lack of vision. He helped me achieve everything here just so that you would die."_

Astra rose an eyebrow.

"But why would somebody be that mean?" She asked naively. Olose chuckled.  
"I'm not entirely sure." Olose told her. "But he's made a mistake. He's lured me into his game again. And this time I won't let him escape."

"Why are you so sure this is the same person?" Astra asked.

"Think about it." Olose told her. "It's obvious you'd want to talk to Arcadia, and obvious where she goes, I go. It separates me from my crew and my ship, and brings me here. I think this whole protest is an attempt to get to me. But I have no idea _why_. I can't understand who's doing it. Who has possible access to make moves this large to harm me. I mean, I've made plenty of enemies, but none like this."

"Somebody supporting the Cardinal maybe?" Came a familiar voice. Santia walked in, still in her long flowing red tunic.

"Santia. Long time no see." Smiled Olose. "Still a Temple Knight?"

"We've been reformed." Santia explained. "We now serve the royalty as the Royal Knights. Never again can a leader use us for his own ambitions as the Cardinal did."

"Glad to hear it." Smiled Olose. "You suggest the Cardinal. Or his supporters. I don't think anybody would risk it. Not to mention I never knew of anybody powerful enough."

"He had many powerful friends easily with enough influence to do this." Santia replied. "We've investigated the idea, but got nowhere."

"I don't traditionally leave my enemies alive." Olose explained. "That's why I can't understand who it is."

"That's exactly what makes a supporter of the Cardinal seem so logical." Santia pointed out.

"Perhaps." Olose sighed. "Look. If this is a threat against me, then we need to expose me. Draw this guy out before he causes real harm. I'm pretty hard to kill, so he won't have it easy. But we can't let him harm everybody else while on his quest to harm me for whatever reason."

"He could be targeting the elvaan capital too. A happy side effect." Santia suggested.

"It's possible." Olose admitted. "The problem we face is I can't force his hand, but he can force mine. Threats against the capital and safety will draw me out like he wants. If only we knew who he was!"

"I think his plan is more elaborate than just force a confrontation." Astra spoke up.

"I have a feeling you're right, Princess." Santia agreed.

A robed figure stood upon a table.

"Quiet!" He snapped at the roaring crowd. "Princess Astra is yet to respond to our protests against her taking the throne. She is too weak to even face us. And now she's called into aide that wondering hero. Olose Sampson. The one they claimed saved San d'Oria from the Cardinal. Saved the throne from being overthrown by a fair government, is more accurate."

"He saved us from poison!" Protested one of the crowd.

"The Cardinal would have triumphed were it not for him!" A second cried.

"Yes. Yes." The figure snapped. "Olose Sampson saved the throne. He is immensely skilled. But more than that, he is immortal. Save for one weakness. Silver."

"We're not going to kill the hero of San d'Oria!" Another member of the crowd shouted.

"Don't you understand?" The figure snapped. "Sampson will defend the crown again, and he _will _succeed unless we eliminate him. Astra is too weak to rule, we need to dispose of her, but we simply _cannot _if Olose Sampson stands in the way." The figure paused. "If we are to be victorious, Olose Sampson must die."


	52. Training

**Author's Note: This may be 'it' as it were. What I mean is the point where the story goes so crap it just needs to end. I tried to employ an interesting twist for a character, but having written it, I think it may, to use a popular phrase, 'jumped the shark'. I'm hoping people will find it alright, but I think that's hopeful. I think this is where it all goes downhill. Sorry people. This storyline I hadn't planned. I had the idea, but no actual storyline thoughts, so it's coming off very badly.**

**I may miss a few updates. Really sorry, but I want to try and end this well, and not a 'thank God that's over' ending. So I may take longer to do coming chapters. I'm finding this storyline very hard, losing sleep again, and being generally busy. I'm hoping it'll become better as it goes on, but it's a thin line.**

**Last chapter I forgot to say thanks to Phabrizoe for the congratulations on reaching 50. Sorry Phabrizoe, I forgot! Thanks a lot. Longest story in the FFXI section huh? I have far too much spare time on my hands it would seem! Thanks for the congratulations.**

**Oh, and referring to TheFrogKiller and how these guys always find themselves in a bad situation, that's why I set this eight months later. So that there was a suitably long break between stuff happening to them, although he's still really unlucky. At least these new events are the machinations of some mysterious new bad guy to challenge him.**

**CHAPTER 52**

**TRAINING**

"Wait a minute." Olose said thoughtfully, looking up from the papers that recorded all of the public out cries that had been made by the protesters against Astra. "They have a lot to criticise, but they seem to target that they don't feel you'll make a strong military leader, right?"

"Well, yes." Astra answered.

"War is all that's on these people's minds." Santia explained.

"Everybody wants to blame somebody else for our defeat by Bastok." Dartian, who had now joined them, sighed. "For a while, the Cardinal made a perfect scapegoat. But now they've turned their attention to Astra and the royal family."  
"Well, if they want a strong military leader, why don't we give them one?" Olose suggested.

"How?" Astra asked. "I can barely lift a sword. Not those big broadswords anyway." She blushed slightly.

"Who said anything about a warrior?" Olose asked with a grin.

"A mage?" Santia guessed curiously. "Interesting idea."

"I don't know anything about magic." Astra sighed. "Who would possibly teach me?" Olose paused.

"Oh. I know somebody." He smiled.

Phabrizoe sighed, clutching the link pearl.

"No!" He cried down it. "I'm not a teacher!"

"Hey! This is the fate of a kingdom here!" Olose cried.

"Well perhaps if she had had some training." Phabrizoe sighed. "But as it stands I couldn't possibly train her."

"Come on Phabz, you can do it." Olose encouraged.

"I really don't have the patience to deal with some prissy elvaan princess." Phabrizoe groaned. "Find her some royal educator or something."

"But I can trust you." Olose moaned. "Come on. You'll get to see San d'Oria. And insult the elvaans."

"Tempting." Phabrizoe said thoughtfully. "Fine. I'll do it. But only as a favour to you."

"I _am _your captain." Olose reminded him.

"I wasn't aware we were at sea." Phabrizoe shot back.

"You win this round." Olose grumbled. "I'll see you here as soon as possible then."

"Right. In the meantime, get her reading some magic books. I don't want to have to train a total newbie."

"Got it." Olose announced, placing down the link pearl. He turned to Astra who had been listening.

"Prissy?" She repeated angrily.  
"Hey, he's a nice guy. Once you get to know him." Olose explained. "And he's dammed powerful too." Astra continued to stare at him. "Okay! It's not my fault! Blame him!" She sighed with a slight laugh.

"I'll go and get some books. I've read a few on magic before, but never tried it." She paused. "How am I going to become powerful in a matter of days? Powerful enough to lead a nation?"

"I have a theory." Olose answered. "Your muscles failed to develop due to the Cardinal's poison, but that wouldn't have stunted your magical abilities. However, it's entirely possible that the energy that would normally let you grow like an ordinary person was _redirected _into your magical skills, making you far more powerful than ordinary person."

"That's really clever." Astra remarked.

"I know. Arcadia suggested it to me over linkshell." Olose grinned innocently and Astra laughed. "It'll be a while before Phabz gets here. You should probably get reading." Olose stood.  
"Where are you going?" Astra asked.

"To the tavern." Laughed Olose.

Dartian, Santia and Olose were all sat around the bar table, enjoying a drink and catching up on old times. Dartian would occasionally put his arm around Santia, and allow her to lean against him, which Olose still couldn't get his head around.

"So, when did you two get together?" He decided to ask.

"Clearing up after you saved the whole city." Dartian laughed. "Everybody needed somebody in the wake of the Cardinal. We were just kinda right for each other."

"Which is his way of saying he was too scared to ask me out." Santia ribbed, and Dartian smirked.

"So, you guys want more drinks?" Olose asked. He only drank for effect due to his regeneration skills, but he still offered.

"Yeah, sure." Dartian smiled.

"We'll buy the next round." Santia decided. Olose wondered up to the bar, and casually flung some money down.

"Three beers." He stated. The bartender nodded. Olose suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

"OLOSE!" Dartian suddenly cried. Olose swung around just in time to see a dagger flying at his head. He dodged out of the way and it thudded into the wall behind him. He glanced at it. Silver. His eyes went wide as he saw his attacker running, silver sword in hand.

He never made it, being impaled from behind by Dartian.

"Thanks for the save." Olose smiled.

"No problem." Dartian replied.

Half the bar suddenly seemed to draw silver weaponry.  
"Ah. This looks like this is going to get worse before it gets better." Olose commented. "You two. Get out of here. They want me, remember?"

"Nonsense." Dartian laughed, sword drawn. "All for one, and one for all. Remember?" Santia drew her weapon and stood by Dartian's side.

"We'll sort out these thugs." She grinned. "If they dare mess with the Temple Knights and Royal Guard."

"Oh, we dare." Snarled one of the aggressors. "It's time the elvaan crown fell!"

"They always have to be difficult." Olose sighed.

He kicked the table they had been sat around. It hurled through the air, smashing into the group. By now, anybody not up for an armed barroom brawl had fled, and chaos erupted. Santia and Dartian quickly engaged the group with their swords, making quick work of their attackers with their rapiers. Olose picked up a chair and smashed it into one of the thugs before stealing his blade (luckily the handle wasn't made of silver). He slashed outwards at his attackers and they stayed back. He smiled before hurling the sword at one. The aggressor went down, which stunned the others long enough for Olose to find a new weapon. He ripped the whole top of the bar off, and swung it like a huge bat. He slammed into a group of the thugs, shattering the wooden base and taking them out. One sneaking attacker saw this as the perfect time to attack Olose, as he was without a weapon in light of breaking the bar top. He was wrong. Olose hurled the splintered shard of the bar at him, and he found a long piece of wood stuck in his chest.

Dartian swiped down at the attacking mobs feet, dropping many, while Santia drove them back by running into the middle. Olose jumped up onto a table and swung from the hanging candle light across to them.

"Run?" He suggested.

"Run." They confirmed. The three bolted and dove through the window, shattering it. Olose paused for a moment, before he let out a mighty grin. He slammed into the support beam holding up the cover over the exit to the tavern, and brought it down, blocking the exit. He smiled, dusting off his hands.

"Now that's a job well done." He laughed.

"Let's just get out of here." Dartian sighed. "I don't want to have to clear this one up." The three disappeared, leaving the shattered tavern behind.

Olose approached Astra some time later.

"That confirms it." He stated. "At least a part of this plan involves killing me."

"It's possibly they just heard you were in the vicinity so targeted you." Astra pointed out, looking up from her reading material.

"Possible. I don't mean to sound egocentric you know, but it does add up." Olose explained. "Somebody wants me out of the way, even if it is just to make it easier to take over from you." Olose decided. "It doesn't matter. We can handle it."

"Hopefully causing less damage than you did at the tavern." Astra laughed. "So, how does this help our situation?"

"I have a plan. But it's risky." Olose told her. "Look. It's clear that these protestors think themselves as pretty strong warriors, or else they wouldn't have tried to attack me head on. I propose a contest. You versus every challenger San d'Oria has to offer."

"_WHAT?_" Astra screamed in horror.  
"Hear me out. If we can get you to be powerful enough magically, these guys will drop like flies." Olose explained.

"But it would have to be soon. I could never-" Astra started to shake with fear.

"Calm down." Olose stated. "Look, you can do this. I know you can. Arcadia thinks this will work, and she's usually right." He smirked. "Hell, she's always right. It gets annoying." Astra smiled slightly.

"You had better have one hell of a mage coming to train me." She said softly.

"Somebody call?" Phabrizoe grinned from the entrance to the throne room. Olose beamed a smile. Astra just rose a curious eyebrow.

Phabrizoe was perched quite happily on the throne of San d'Oria, once the proudest nation in Vana'diel, watching Astra practice.

"Now, just will the fireball into being before you. Feel the power run through you." He explained. "Feel, don't think. Use your instincts."

"I can't feel a thing." Astra replied.

"Come on." He tried to encourage her, but was feeling pretty weary. "If you just let yourself feel it, it'll come to you."

"I'll try." Astra sighed.

"Don't picture the world around you. Shut your eyes. Focus on the words of the scroll and-" The wall to the throne room suddenly exploded in a mass of flame like none Phabrizoe had seen. His jaw dropped. "-And quickly learn some self control." He finished. Astra opened her eyes cautiously.

"What the-?" She suddenly exclaimed.

"I think Arcadia's theory about how powerful you are wasn't off the mark." He gasped, looking at the crumbling rock. Santia bolted into the room.

"What happened?" She cried.

"I think we've just found us a very powerful mage." Phabrizoe explained.

Outside in the forest, Phabrizoe decided to put Astra through her paces.

"Alright. Water spell. Give it a shot." Phabrizoe suggested. Astra sighed, and began to focus. There was a sudden rumble as the ground cracked in front of them. "No. That's Earth. Focus on the scrolls you read." He warned. "It's easy to make a mistake with that much raw power-" He stopped as water erupted in a mighty tidal wave from the crack in the ground and rocketed out across the plains, crushing the trees before them. Once again his jaw dropped.

"Sorry. I got a bit distracted and faltered a bit near the end. Wasn't quite powerful enough, was it?" Astra said sadly. A tree collapsed. Phabrizoe just stared in awe.

Olose wondered through the street, pinning up flyers for the coming competition having gotten Astra's approval now. He suddenly stopped in shock as he saw a massive burst of flame erupting into the sky parting the very clouds. He just stared in disbelief. Astra was becoming insanely powerful at lightning speeds. It was unbelievable.

An undead Wight approached Astra, and she trembled nervously. Phabrizoe just smiled.

"Just concentrate. These are quite powerful, but no match for you." He explained. Astra shut her eyes and began to chant. A bright white light suddenly sliced the Wight in two, and it collapsed. "Wait. That was banish! You been studying white magic?"

"Well, last night I was done with the black magic spells. They came to me so easily, so I thought I'd try something different." She explained.

"But that was ridiculously powerful!" He exclaimed. "You're specialising in black magic! White magic shouldn't be that powerful for you! No way!" Astra just smiled.

"I've been trying my cure spells as well on sick people in town. They haven't failed yet. I think I may be getting good at this." She said happily.

"I'll say." Gasped Phabrizoe. "And you don't tire out at all."

"Not from casting, but all this exercise leaves me feeling faint." She stated.

"Yes, I figured with your background you'd have low endurance." Phabrizoe commented. "Then in a fight stand your ground. Don't move. You need all of your energy. Just use your spells. Nothing could withstand that. You're already better than I am and I've trained you for a few days."

"I can stand my ground. Watch this." She quickly cast a spell of protect on herself. Phabrizoe reached out to touch the force field and felt a solid wall.

"What? That's supposed to weaken the blow, not be solid!" The little tarutaru exclaimed. "This is insane!"

"If the Cardinal knew this made people so powerful, he'd never have inflicted it upon me." Astra smiled. "I kind of wish he was around now so I could show him!" She suddenly paused and her face fell. "I-I'm-" She suddenly ran off, much to Phabrizoe's surprise.

The black mage walked in to talk to Olose, who was talking to Santia and Dartian, having failed to find Astra after a long search.

"Olose." He stated simply. "You wouldn't believe Astra. She's excelled in both magic arts far beyond anything I've ever seen. It's insane."

"She's a red mage then?" Olose asked.

"Nope. A red mage can cast both types of spell, but limited. She can cast both to their full extent. She's more of a 'grey mage'." He shook his head in disbelief. "I'm serious. I've never seen power like hers."

"And you never will again." Astra commented from the doorway, her face stained with tears.

"Astra!" Olose cried.  
"What's wrong?" Phabrizoe asked quickly.

"I thought. I wanted to see the Cardinal. I wanted to kill him. Use my new power to crush him. They say power corrupts. They're right. I don't want it." She explained.

"But Princess-" Dartian began.

"It's the only way to save the kingdom!" Santia input.

"But I feel horrible." She was shaking. "I think about death and destruction and power! I don't want it! I want it to go away!" She started crying, and Olose rushed in to hug her.

"Shh. It's alright." He said gently. "I understand. I know what it's like to have a power burning inside of you, ya know?"

"I know." She said through teary eyes. "But I can't handle it. I don't want to think mean thoughts."

"It's natural." Olose told her.  
"Not for me!" She sobbed.

"Astra. The people you feel angry towards is a perfectly natural response. The Cardinal robbed you of your _life_. These people are planning to do the same. You can stop them. You can save San d'Oria." He told her.

"By being violent." Astra sniffled. "Why can't we solve things peacefully?"

"Because these people are evil. They won't give up. We need to stop them." Dartian explained. "Or innocent people could die."

"To protect life. Yes. That's why I'll do it. I'll do it." She decided. "I'll do it. To save life, not take it. I don't want to kill."

"We understand." Olose said gently.

"Then I'll continue my training. Sorry everyone." Astra turned and left with the elegance befitting her status as a princess.

**Author's Note: Now you see what I mean. Ahem. For fun, you can always read Astra being trained with "Gonna Fly Now" from Rocky playing in the background, it makes it bearable at least! But for the most part, I'm really sorry this has gone so badly. I'm kinda back in that 'struggling to write' slump right now. I have the climax sorted, so the story should go out on a bang, but I feel this storyline is going to go really badly unless I come up with a way to make it better soon.**

**Sorry to have subjected you to another crappy chapter everyone!**


	53. Contest

**Author's Note: This chapter is shorter than usual. Sorry! I barely got it done, it's 2.15 in the morning here, and I've just finished. I'm gonna have to take a break on updates I think. Sorry, but I need to gather thoughts and stuff to write this. My brain feels like putty whenever I try to write. A few scenes in this I got back to normal in, just enjoying writing the story, but I'm finding it really hard. I will _try _to update once a day still, but might miss a few. I'm really sorry, but finding it very hard.**

**I still feel this chapter is a little crap, but most people seem to not mind and enjoy it anyway. Which I'm really glad to here! If you do find it bad, I'm really sorry, I'm just finding it really hard to write at the moment.**

**TheFrogKiller's giving me a hand again, which I can't thank him enough for, so hopefully I'll be able to come up with something to keep this storyline from totally going down the crapper.**

**Oh, and Phabrizoe has an ironic line in here, considering how I behave and I wrote it. I wonder if anybody spots it…**

**CHAPTER 53**

**CONTEST**

The robed figure held the flyer advertising the competition in his hand, and laughed.

"Now this is an interesting move." He announced to the mob that had brought it to him.

"It's a trap!" Somebody cried.

"No. No it is not." The figure stated simply. "Sampson wouldn't resort to this kind of trickery. Unless there is something we've overlooked. Maybe a spell to disguise a different fighter as Astra-" He paused. "No, it doesn't seem to be possible."

"What shall we do?" Somebody else asked.

"Enter, of course." The figure smiled. "A trap would be very bad publicity, we could turn it around just as easily as we'd manipulate her loss. She cannot win." He laughed. "And I'll be there for backup, of course."

"Do we all participate then?" Yet another of the mob asked.

"Unless you're scared of this one girl." The figure mocked. "We enter and we crush her. She's just making things easier for us." He grinned at the thought of his triumph.

Astra was stood outside of the Chateau, looking out into the darkness. The moon hung high in the sky, not quite full, and she was glad of it. She had no desire to be around Olose on a full moon. Phabrizoe finally found her, and wondered over to her. She turned away nervously, the competition was but a day away, and she was clearly afraid.

"I don't think I can do." She said softly, feeling Phabrizoe's presence magically. That made him shiver.

"Can't do it?" He asked incuriously. "Astra, these are one on one matches. Nobody could beat you. You're more powerful than I could ever be after only a few days of training."

"But they'll be skilled warriors. I've had no practice or experience." She spluttered.

"You could just wave your hand and blast them across the city!" Phabrizoe cried. "When I look at you, all I see is light."  
"You mean you see hope in me?" She asked with a slight smile.

"No. I see a light. You physically give off a glow you've become so powerful. I can only see it now, I have to admit. When it's dark." He paused. "I'd be more worried about the other guys surviving."

"I don't want to kill anybody!" She said quickly.  
"Then don't. You have the ability to cure wounds as well remember?" Phabrizoe pointed out. "Just your power. If they lose that footing, they won't have any ground to gain more supporters.heal anybody you injure. This competition is just to prove these accusers wrong. You just need to prove yourself, and believe me, you may do a lot more than that."

"It just doesn't feel right! Responding violently!" Astra explained. "There must still be other ways."

"If I learnt anything travelling with Olose, it's that a good deal of violence solves anything." Phabrizoe laughed.

"I wish Arcadia was here." Astra sighed. "She'd understand."

"I understand." Phabrizoe stated. "But I also know what's necessary."

"Sometimes I think they're right. I don't want to rule a kingdom. Maybe I'm not fit to be Queen." She sad to herself.

"They just want the throne for themselves, and have taken this opportunity. Never think badly of yourself, right? It's unproductive and annoys people." Phabrizoe told her, half smirking. Astra smiled slightly. "Now you should be sleeping. Tomorrow is going to be rough." He paused. "Urm, for everyone else that is."

Astra didn't sleep. She stayed awake, and she stayed tense. Until that following day. She was staring into the eyes of the first challenger. An elvaan monk who had trained with the galkas in Bastok to perfect his skills. He was well known for his awesome skill, one of the better challengers there, they said. And first she had to face. He wore a thick and heavy gi while Astra was clad in a simple white robe. She gulped. His dull eyes locked onto hers and she suddenly felt as if she was in a lot of trouble. The whistle blew and he ran at her at incredible speeds. She shut her eyes and quickly cast a fireball. He shot away from her at speeds even faster than when she had run, flying across the elvaan courtyard and slamming into the rock wall, causing it to crumble. He didn't move for a moment and the crowd fell silent.

"What power." Whispered a robed figure near the back in shock. "That's incredible. How did they-" He paused. "This must be investigated. If I could harvest-"

"Would the next challenger step into the ring, please?" Olose asked the crowd, enjoying his role as host, while Astra made sure the monk she had fought was still alive. There was a long silence. It seemed everybody had been shocked by her performance. A man in a long flowing blue trench coat stepped up.

"I'll take her." He stated.

"And you are?" Olose asked.

"I've studied the black arts for longer than this Princess has been on this planet. She's no match for me." He grinned.

"That's one helluva name folks!" Olose joked to the crowd.

"He's enjoying this far too much." Santia whispered to Dartian.

"Well, it does look fun." Dartian replied.

"My name will only be important when you carve it on the trophy." The black mage stated. "Until then, you know all you need to know."

"Clearly somebody thinks 'dark and mysterious' is still cool." Olose announced. "Very well. Princess Astra, you ready?" She nodded unconfidently. "Mr No Name, you ready?" Olose mocked.

"Of course." He replied with a smirk. Olose took a step back and blew the whistle.

The black mage quickly cast something.  
"Ha! My shell spell is impenetrable." He taunted. "You'll never-" Lightning tore down from the sky cutting him off and ripped through his shell, leaving him limp on the floor. Astra sighed and opened her eyes again. The robed figure let out a sigh of his own.

"I can see where this is going." He said to himself. "I need not see any more of this. I have research to do." He turned and he left, before anybody could ponder why he was talking to himself.

He sat down, removing his hood, revealing the sharply cut grey hair and lifeless eyes of his face, a face that looked as if it was carved from stone. He had travelled to the San d'Orian library, and was looking into the mass of information stored within. He had found it. Records on Astra's past, arranged only recently to explain exactly what had happened to her. He had studied them well to be able to manipulate the masses against her, and was certain there was no mention of any magical abilities. He read it quickly. He found the part he was looking for. Details of the poison that had affected her. It stunted growth. Targeted her muscles and stopped them from developing or exhibiting any signs of strength. Like it had capped her ability to grow strong. But that would mean all the energy that would go to muscle growth would have to go somewhere. Into magic. Her magical growth. Stunted physical growth led to immense magical growth. He grinned to himself. That power was useless for himself, but an heir, a child easily manipulated into being loyal, given that power could become so powerful whole towns would fall to him!

He paused in his thoughts. No. Not magical power. Forget magic. Olose. Think of Olose. What if somebody like him had his power unleashed? What if-

He froze. Olose Sampson was stood over him.

"You know, that cloak of yours makes you stand out." The stranger leapt to his feet quickly. Olose laughed. "It was just a hunch, but I guess you're the one behind this."

"Silence fool." Snapped the stranger.

"Who are you?" Olose asked, circling him. The stranger seemed to twitch.

"You can just call me the Leader. I lead the people where no others dare. In Kazham, we fought for equality, here, we fight to throw out an outdated legal system." He smiled. "Perfectly innocent."

"Why me? Why are you so hell bent on killing me?" Olose growled.

"Because you are the one who stops evolution. You interfere. You aren't natural. So much should have happened but didn't because of _your _interference. You stop the natural development of things." The Leader told him.

"There's nothing natural about destroying a town!" Olose snapped.

"Oh, but there is." The Leader laughed. "These cities are nature. Just a different kind. They were developed by the elvaan, a natural creation of the goddess Altana. How we behave is natural. But that lycanthropic curse and you. You are not. You are a side effect of Promethia, the evil god. You are an unholy blight on this world that stands in nature's way!" He roared. Olose rolled his eyes.

"What a load of rubbish. You threaten lives. I stop you. End of story." Olose explained, already reaching for his sword.

"I just behave as nature has made me behave." The Leader explained. "The people around me, the cities, my own brain, it's all naturally evolved for me to behave this way. I can't help it. I'm part of nature's grand scheme of things."  
"Shut up." Olose decided. "So, is this where we fight to the death?"

"Oh no. Not here, Olose Sampson." Laughed the Leader. "Not now. So much to do, you won't interfere." There was a sudden explosion from the direction of the competition. The Leader smirked for a moment, counting on such a distraction. Olose spun around, but the time he turned back, the Leader was gone. He cursed, but wasted no time.

He ran out in the direction of the competition, dodging the crowd who were trying to get there also. He ran up, and stopped, to see Astra standing, perfectly okay.

"What happened?" He cried, before seeing a burnt figure being dragged off on a stretcher.

"Oh." She said, feeling quite guilty. "I, urm, might of cast a spell too powerful."

"What? Why?" Olose asked.

"She hit me." Astra explained. "Luckily I healed myself, but it hurt. I overreacted."

"That's it." Dartian told them. "Looks like they're packing up and going home."

"Oh goddess!" Astra suddenly sobbed. "I nearly killed that girl! Just because she landed a single hit! I don't want this power! Make it go away! Make it go away!" Olose quickly hugged her.

"It's okay. You don't need it. Just relax. You can forget about it. Go back to how you were." He said simply.

"I can't! I can't!" She cried. "It's always there! Tempting me!" Santia put an arm around her.

"Come on Princess. Let's go inside." She said softly, clearly concerned about her well-being as well as wanting to get her out of the public eye.

Olose approached Dartian and Phabrizoe.

"I can't believe how powerful she's become." Phabrizoe said to Dartian.

"I know." Dartian whistled.

"I just had an interesting run in." Olose told them.

"You met our mysterious foe?" Dartian guessed.

"Yes. I didn't recognise him, and got a good look at his face. He seems to be somebody new. Gave me a loud of crap about how I'm an enemy of nature. I don't know if I quite believe that's his cause." He explained thoughtfully.

"And you let him get away?" Phabrizoe asked sceptically.

"Okay, mistakes were made." Olose admitted. "I got distracted. But at least we know who he is now. In a sense." Olose paused. "What happened here?"  
"I doubt anybody will be implying Astra isn't strong anymore. I don't know what this guy's plan was, but he's not going to pull it off anymore. Not without severe trouble, anyway." Dartian answered.

"Be careful." Olose warned. "We may have just forced his hand. This might not be over yet."

"I had a feeling you were going to say that, Captain." Phabrizoe grumbled.

**Author's Note: If you wanted to know what quote I meant, it's: "Never think badly of yourself, right? It's unproductive and annoys people." When I wrote that, I kind of laughed at how ironic it was. Felt I should point it out.**


	54. Birth And Betrayal

**Author's Note: You may notice I've broken my one word chapter naming scheme. This is in the run up to the finale. I want more dramatic chapter titles, and can't always do that with one word titles.**

**This contains a minor spoiler for the chapter, so skip it if you want, it's obvious anyway. In this chapter Arcadia gives birth. Hence the title. It's written very poorly. I've never seen anybody give birth unsurprisingly, then have to deal with it in a medieval hospital. So all in all it's written terribly. If only I paid attention to bad hospital dramas! So I apologise for that being a bit bad.**

**Anyway, enjoy the chapter. I've sped things up towards the end now, deciding a quick and good ending is much better than a slow and crappy one. I'd predict four chapters left at the moment, maybe more, maybe less. Sad to think this story is finally coming to an end…**

**CHAPTER 54**

**BIRTH AND BETRAYAL **

Olose smiled in the massive crowd as Astra felt the crown be placed upon her head. She was Queen, and nobody had been able to stop it. The city had been reeling after her victory in the competition, and the Leader had disappeared from the city. Any violent outbreaks were soon placed to rest, and Astra had secured her position as a deserved ruler. Arcadia had made the journey to be there, despite being heavily pregnant, along with the _Destiny II's _crew.

Most the crew were enthralled by the ceremony, only Suse being bored, but she amused herself with a butterfly that had landed on her lap. Of course, it flew off, leaving her sad, but she could watch it fly around the massive hall. It wasn't until the ceremony was over and that she got her chance to speak to Astra she was happy. The entire crew knew her pretty well in the aftermath to the last incident in San d'Oria, and so everybody enjoyed seeing her again. Trevia took great pleasure in introducing her to Jeren, who was thrilled to meet her, an elvaan Queen, and who was in general enthralled by San d'Oria.

Nadia decided to take her time in San d'Oria to explore the city. It had been her home for so long, and she had to admit ,she missed it. She smirked as she saw the barracks, her old home. She wondered if the troops had more respect than she had back then. She knew what it meant to be loyal now. To care about your leaders. Olose. Back then she had just been a rebel for the sake of it, but she had been much younger. And Norg had been there, as annoying as he was, he was a friend. If he was still around, she'd of been just as loyal to him as she was to Olose. But that chance was taken away.

"You miss him, don't you?" Came a voice.

"What?" Snapped Nadia.

"Norg. That friend of yours." A figure stepped out of the shadows.

"Who are you?" Nadia growled. The figure lowered his hood, the thick robe he wore hanging from his body. His grizzled features scanned her. His grey eyes looked over every part of her body. "You're that guy Olose talked about, aren't you?" She guessed, drawing her sword quickly. "He may have let you escape, but I won't!"

"Please. I come here under a flag of peace." He held his arms up plainly.

"I don't believe you. You nearly destroyed Kazham. You're evil!" Nadia circled him, ready to strike.

"Please. Kazham is a bias society. I did what I thought was right." He paused. "As I do now. I only intend to spread the truth."

"What do you mean?" Nadia asked suspiciously.

"Interesting facts that I have found." He explained. "Take a look at this." He passed her a copy of the San d'Orian Times, the elvaan's own version of the Vana'diel Tribune.

"This is the paper the day Norg was murdered." She said, reading the headline about the victim who was mauled by a beast. A werewolf.

"Yes." The Leader laughed, passing over another sheet. "Look at that."

"This is the prison records." Nadia whispered.

"Indeed. Check the dates." The Leader told her. She did so.  
"That's odd." She remarked. "They don't match up. Abaj didn't escape until a day _after _Norg was murdered." She said curiously.

"Exactly." Stated the Leader. "Abaj Tuh was in jail when your friend was killed by a werewolf. There aren't many werewolves in the world."

"This is a trick." Nadia decided. "And Olose said you were smart."

"Both of those are taken from the elvaan archives. Check for yourself. Go to the elvaan library and look." He smiled warmly. "I am an enemy of Olose yes. And I do seek to turn you against him. But my weapon is truth, not trickery. The facts speak for themselves."

"But Olose was with Arcadia!" Nadia argued. "It can't have been him!"

"Was he?" The Leader smirked. "When I saw this I became suspicious. Final evidence that Olose was evil? I took it. I found a letter in Arcadia's manor. Claiming it was not easy, but I did it." He passed it over. "It's a letter from Olose. It states that he has arrived in San d'Oria, investigating what he believes to be an assassination attempt against Arcadia. The dates match up. He was in San d'Oria the night Norg was killed."

"No." Nadia stated. "No. This is fake!"

"Fake?" He laughed. "It would be a clever scheme to fake yes. Why don't you research it yourself. You may be surprised." He turned and left. Nadia was too stunned to do anything.

Olose was far more stunned than even Nadia. At that very moment in time, he was stood over Arcadia, who was screaming. They were in the elvaan hospital, having been rushed there from the Chateau.  
"Come on Arcadia!" He cried. "You can do it!"

"No I can't!" She replied painfully.

"Yes you can!" He argued with a smile.

"Perhaps you want to try." She said through gritted teeth.

"Come on. Push." The doctor said in a business like way. Olose held her hand tightly.  
"It is so easy for you to say that." She spluttered. The doctor slowly lifted the baby out of her and she collapsed, breathing heavily.

"Congratulations. It's a girl." He smiled, cutting the cord.

"I…knew….it." Arcadia panted. Olose stared in awe at his own child, holding her in his arms delicately. She squirmed, crying, covered in blood. He lowered her down and passed her to Arcadia. Arcadia looked into her baby's eyes, smiling. "I can already tell you're going to be trouble." She managed to say, still panting, her hair disarrayed and her body covered in sweat. "Suse! Never get pregnant!" Suse, who had been watching, only managed to nod sheepishly.

"Let's change ourrrr plans for tonight." Trevia decided to tell Jeren in shock, prompting a laugh.

"Did I mention that hurt?" Arcadia panted. Olose managed a teary smile as he looked down at his daughter.

"I'll need to take her away to rest. We'll check everything's alright." The doctor explained. "I suggest you let your wife rest." He told Olose. Olose nodded, smiling to Arcadia, who sighed a beautiful smile back. He released her hand and got up, walking out. The others followed.

Nadia was in the great San d'Orian library, completely unaware of the events at the hospital. She was engrossed in records. Everything did point to Olose being the murderer of Norg, but she couldn't quite believe it. Could it be a hoax? No. The official elvaan archives were out of bounds, and that mysterious man had been a hume. There was no way he could have. There was one other possibility she hadn't considered. That there was a third werewolf. Another survivor somewhere in the world. But then why was Olose in San d'Oria? Was he even? That letter could have been faked. Nadia rose. She decided she had to speak to Arcadia. She would tell the truth, even if Olose didn't.

Olose looked down at his daughter as she resided in her crib, sleeping peacefully. He smiled as she seemed to stretch. She was so small. Smaller than Olose had expected. He'd never seen a newborn baby up close, and this was his daughter. The feeling was impossible to describe. She was fully awake now, and seemed to be squirming with effort. He just watched her as her little limbs moved. He wasn't sure what she was trying to do, but then again, neither was she. He held out his finger and her little hand grabbed it, wrapping around it. She seemed to smile at her efforts, and didn't let go.

"Wow! She's rrrrrreally tiny!" Suse beamed as she stuck her head over the crib.

"I know." Olose grinned.

"What's she doing?" Suse asked, turning her head as she stared at the child.

"I have no idea." Olose was still grinning.

"She doesn't look much like you." Suse remarked. "She doesn't have any hair or anything!"

"That's because she's just been born." Olose laughed.

"Oh." Suse answered simply. "Does she grow it?"

"Of course." Olose smirked, realising Suse must have never seen a baby before, or at least not a hume.

"And they cut herrrr tail off! Is that why you don't have tails?" Suse asked curiously.

"That wasn't her tail, Suse." Olose explained. "It's what fed her while she was inside Arcadia."

"You get fed through your tails?" Suse said in surprise. Olose laughed.

"Not quite." He told her. Suse gave up and just went back to staring at the baby in awe.

"What's herrrr name?" She asked.

"I'm not sure yet." Olose answered. "Had a few ideas. Arcadia talked a few over with me."

"Which ones?" Suse questioned.

"Aw, I dunno. I like 'em all. Aeria, Leine, Maialin, Arziel. Things like that." He explained. Suse didn't seem impressed.

"They'rrrre rrrrrubbish." She purred. "All good name's start with an 'S'!" She beamed.  
"Yeah, I figured you'd say something like that." Olose grumbled, noticing his daughter had fallen back to sleep.

"She's cute though." Suse decided to comment. "All little and snuggly."

"I don't think that's a word." Olose observed gleefully.

"Sooooo?" Suse asked, sticking her head in front of his face.

"You have a point." Olose admitted.

Nadia jogged into the hospital, her search for Arcadia having revealed that she had been rushed there. Part of her burned with rage, the thought that Olose was there, happy with his child, when he may have murdered Norg, her mentor, and his best friend. However, the more logical part was fighting it. Telling her that he had no motive. She knew that to be true. There was no reason to kill Norg, so he couldn't have. She was trusting a plain villain, and it was obvious that wasn't smart. But the evidence seemed to stack up. It seemed to be true. But it couldn't be! The elvaan records _could _be tampered with, it was possible, and the letter could be a fake. After all, if this man was allied with the Cardinal during his reign over San d'Oria, he could have easily edited the records. He certainly seemed to be a man of planning.

She had to give Olose the benefit of the doubt. She was certain of that. He had been loyal, her friend, and saved her life more than a dozen times. And then there was this clearly evil stranger. Who to trust was obvious. She was stupid to not kill the villain when she had the chance.

Olose turned to see Nadia almost running towards him. He grinned as she looked down at the baby.

"Wow." She remarked, smiling. "She's so tiny."

"I said that!" Suse called. Nadia laughed. She loved these guys. He couldn't have done anything wrong.

"She's got your eyes Olose." Nadia remarked.

"Let's hope she doesn't have my teeth, eh?" Olose said, sounding slightly concerned. _Teeth that killed Norg? No. Couldn't have been_.

"I dunno. Might not be such a bad thing." She laughed. "A mortal Sampson just wouldn't be right."

"I am a mortal Sampson, thank you very much." Arcadia smirked from the door, clearly awake. She was wheeled in in a wheel chair by Jeren, who smiled down at the baby.

"Now _that's _cute." He remarked.

"That she is." Olose laughed. "How you feeling?" He asked Arcadia.

"I think I know how you feel when you regenerate." She commented with a groan. "Although death has to be less painful than what I just went through."

"Where's Trevia?" Olose asked curiously. Jeren laughed.

"She's feeling queasy after that. Don't think she wants to come back to the hospital." He laughed.

"Trevia. Hardened assassin. Scared of hospitals." Nadia joked. "Sounds like her." Jeren chuckled to himself.

"Come on guys." Olose waved them out. "We had better go. Don't think we're all supposed to be crowded in here."

The group filtered out of the room and went their separate ways for the evening, Arcadia and Olose staying in the hospital. Nadia was walking home when the figure re-emerged behind her.

"Nadia. Stop." He spoke simply. She turned around. "Your lack of action says that you do not trust me."

"True. That's 'cause I don't." Nadia snapped.

"You don't believe my truth?" The figure curiously asked.

"No. No I don't." She stated. "It's difficult to fake, but can be done."

"What would I gain from lying to you?" He asked. "I can take out Olose myself, if necessary."

"You're sadistic. You want to see me try to kill him. Simple." She continued to walk away. "But you made a mistake. Olose has no _reason _to kill Norg."

"You mean apart from the fact he was having an affair with Arcadia?" He smirked. She spun around.

"What?" She whispered.

"I know more than you can imagine." He chuckled. "While I was in jail, Norg enjoyed taunting me, telling me what he got up to, knowing I'd never tell anybody."

"You were in jail?" Nadia asked curiously.

"But he disappeared. He died. I knew who had killed him right away." He paused. "It was at that point I decided to break out. Enough time had passed. I escaped the following day."

"You broke out of prison the day after-" She paused. "Norg. Died." She gasped in utter shock. "Impossible!"

""Quite possible, I'm afraid." He laughed. "I'm-"

"Abaj Tuh." Nadia said in disbelief.


	55. The Death Of A Friendship

**Author's Note: For once I don't have much to say. End is coming. This is pretty much the final build up. TheFrogKiller gave me lots of help with this (Nadia's current character development stemmed from his ideas) and helped me get used to writing again. Still finding it quite hard, but we're so close to the end now it doesn't really matter. I should be able to do the next chapters well enough.**

**Oh, for those interested, you weren't supposed to know who the villain was until the finale, but I figured most people would probably guess, so I revealed it early. I actually like it better this way, I think. Still, if you still guessed before the end of the last chapter, I guess that just shows what a predictable writer I am.**

**CHAPTER 55**

**THE DEATH OF A FRIENDSHIP**

Nadia went for her sword instantly, swinging it an arc at Abaj. Abaj simply smiled, swinging to the side and grabbed her wrist. He pulled down hard, his lycanthropic strength easily breaking her arm. Nadia screamed, dropping her sword and fell to her knees. Abaj kicked her over while she winced in pain.

"Fool." He stated. "Settle down. I am being simply honest with you."

"You're an evil fiend." She growled.

"Lies, my dear. Simple lies." He explained. "Who told you I was evil? _Olose_. He attacked me, he took my life from me."

"You murdered Norg." Nadia growled, trying to rise to her feet, but overwhelmed with pain.  
"That was Olose. I've told you this." Abaj began to circle her. "A potion will heal that arm wound of yours."

"You don't want to heal me." Nadia warned. "You kidnapped Arcadia!"

"An underhanded action, I admit, but one that was necessary. I am a criminal. I admit my actions can be corrupt, but I don't murder innocents!" Abaj cried.

"Niether does Olose." Nadia panted.

"Really? Do you know what happened to his home town?" Abaj laughed. "Olose was not _bitten _by a werewolf. He was born one. A secret he kept from his adopted parents until it was too late. He destroyed the entire town. He was the beast of Lycan Forest."

"He couldn't help it." Nadia argued.

"Oh please. Is that what he told you?" Abaj laughed. "He couldn't sustain his lust for murder in his new life with Arcadia. That drove him to kill Norg when he found out about his affair."  
"Bah! You want me to turn against Olose, and use my loyalties to Norg to do it." Nadia grumbled. "Well, insulting Norg isn't going to make it happen!"

"Everybody has a dark side, my dear." Abaj cackled. "And Norg only revealed his to his prisoners. The ones that could never speak."

"I'm not going to accept these lies from my mortal enemy. Especially not a mortal enemy who should be dead!" Nadia spat. "How did you survive?" Abaj let out a long evil laugh that echoed throughout San d'Oria.

"Not easily." He began to walk around her. "That explosion blew the silver spear from my body, saving my life. But the roof of the cave collapsed, mangling my body and crushing it underneath. My regeneration was triggered, hence the new face, but it failed. Under that much weight and rocks my body could not regenerate. Locked in a spasm of death, my body crushed and mangled but not being allowed to die, I sat there. I sat there as the _years _ticked by, trapped in the pain of eternal death." He took a step towards Nadia, his shadow casting over her. "Sampson left me in that state. Suffering for years. He didn't even check, he knew my power, but didn't check. No. He left me to suffer. And so he must suffer. Do you not see? That is why I do not just strike him down. I want to see him suffer!"

"So you lie to his friends?" Nadia asked, managing to get to her feet.

"I do not _lie_." Abaj growled. "I tell nothing but the truth." He turned away, tossing a potion to Nadia's feet. "Talk to Arcadia. Do what you will. Find the evidence." He smirked. "A battle is coming. It's time to choose sides. You have a chance to right your wrongs and side _against _evil. Don't throw it away."

"Oh, I'll be fighting evil." Nadia assured. "Just don't be certain that means I'll be fighting who you think that means."

"And don't you, my dear, ever be _certain _of anything." Abaj laughed and wondered down the street, leaving Nadia struggling painfully to drink the potion with her one broken arm.

A week passed without Nadia taking any action. She had badly wanted to talk to Olose about her discovery, but something at the back of her mind told her that perhaps Abaj had somehow told the truth. She wasn't going to trust him, but she was going to be cautious. She had stayed quiet for the week for a mixture of reasons. Olose and Arcadia were so busy, only having just moved back to their home, and so overjoyed with their child (now named 'Talia' in honour of somebody Olose had said he used to know) that Nadia hadn't had the heart to bring up anything to disrupt their joy. Her arm was still stiff from the injury anyway, she wouldn't of stood a chance had it degraded to combat. So much for potions curing it. She had to give them credit, at least it had put the bone back together, and she hadn't had to bring it up with Olose.

But she couldn't keep silent forever. She knew what she had to do. She'd talk to Arcadia.

Nadia found Arcadia feeding Talia with a bottle of milk. She smiled as Arcadia watched her.

"Aww, are you full?" Arcadia asked her baby gently. "Yes you are." She laughed. "Aww, look, you split some." She pulled the bottle away and mopped up the milk around the baby's mouth. She suddenly spotted Nadia standing in the doorway. "Ah! Nadia. Ahem. I was just-"

"It's alright." Nadia laughed. "She is your child." Arcadia blushed.  
"Yes, well, the maid said she would feed her, but I wanted to do it. Just to be able to see her. She's so cute, isn't she?"

"'She's so cute, isn't she?' Since when did you speak like that?" Nadia joked.

"Well, I thought it was about time I allowed myself to speak in a more relaxed way. I don't want Talia growing up to feel out of place among heroes like yourselves."

"Heroes. I like that." Nadia smiled.

"Well, you are." Arcadia stated. "You and Olose especially, you'll be remembered as two legendary heroes. Leaders of the greatest crew in the land." She paused. "I've already started telling the baby stories of your exploits." Nadia laughed, she didn't talk to Arcadia enough, but it was clear that Arcadia respected her a great deal.

"Me and Olose? Legendary heroes, huh? Well, if history insists." She chuckled, before deciding to move on to more serious matters. "Arcadia, I was wondering, do you keep a record of all the letters you receive?"

"Yes." Arcadia answered curiously. "We keep them all one of the bookcases in the study. It often comes in handy. Why do you ask?"

"I was looking for letters from around when Norg was assassinated." Nadia explained. "Just their last contact really." Nadia paused. "I've been kind of missing him lately." She finally said to avoid suspicion.

"You want something to remember him by?" Arcadia smiled.

"Yeah. Sort of." Nadia pretended. "Where was Olose when he died? Did he see it happen?"  
"If we were in San d'Oria, we would have visited you. So of course we were not there." Arcadia said warmly. Nadia smirked. "Besides, it was a full moon. Olose was out of the city to keep everybody safe during his transformation." Nadia paused. _Then it is possible_. But Abaj had said that Olose travelled there to stop an assassination attempt. Why would he lie when a perfectly good explanation was already there? Perhaps this was final proof that Abaj was lying.

"Thanks." Nadia said kindly, turning to leave. "You've been more hope than you know."

"I'm always here to help you Nadia." Arcadia told her. Talia started to cry and Arcadia picked her up. "Well, almost always here." She decided, trying to comfort the baby back to sleep. Nadia smiled happily.

She couldn't put her mind at rest however. She went to the study, and found where Arcadia was talking about. They had huge stacks of records indeed, all dated. She guessed it was just some kind of thing the upper class liked to do. Remind themselves of why they were so rich or something. She laughed. She still liked to mock Arcadia even if she was a close friend. Nadia flicked through the letters, and found one from the exact date she was looking for. More specifically, she found a sealed box, locked by a padlock. _So that nobody can read it easily_, she thought. She broke the padlock fairly easily with a dagger she had on her belt, hoping that nobody would notice for a while that it had been broken.

She lifted out a letter within, and began to read.

_Dear Arcadia,_

_I've arrived in San d'Oria. I know you think my timing is off, but rest assured, I won't do anything stupid. I'll stay out of town in the evenings. I know you'd prefer it if I didn't spend any time in towns at all during the full moon cycle, but this is necessary. If this is what I think it is, then your life could be in danger, and I cannot allow that to happen._

_I'm close to finding out who's behind the plot. They're meeting tonight, I know that, and I'll be there. Yes, it's cutting it fine with the transformation, but I'll have to do it. I have to catch them, Arcadia, I simply have to._

_Wish me luck._

_  
Olose._

Nadia placed the letter back in the box in awe. Why lock it away? It was proof, that's why. Proof that Olose killed Norg. He must have lost control. It was still an accident. But he was still dead because of him. He had gotten cocky. Everything Abaj had said was true! No, wait. He had mentioned an affair. His theory on things? The truth. Maybe it wasn't an accident. She shut the box and placed it back, quickly marching out of the study.

She sat down on her bed, pulling at her hair. There were other possibilities. Maybe the letter was a fake. Perhaps Abaj had placed it there. He had to be able to, since he knew the letter was there in the first place. Sure, she had evidence, but none of it was substantial. It could easily have been faked, and this was all a manipulation. She wasn't about to trust Abaj. No way. She needed rest. She needed sleep on it. She could then talk to Olose in the morning. She'd tell him everything. Then, if Abaj was telling the truth, he'd have to respond violently, and if he was lying, Olose would respond truthfully. One way or another she'd know the truth in the morning.

Nadia didn't sleep peacefully that night. She had horrific nightmares. She felt something ripping through her one good arm, tearing a hole in it and pumping something within it. She felt something swirling around her body as she squirmed in her bed before waking up, startled, sitting up in shock. She was panting heavily. She moved her arm, making sure it was still there. It was. She took some deep breaths.

She utterly missed the small pin prick now just below her shoulder.

The room seemed unusually cool. A slight wind was blowing, despite the window being shut. She shivered, and wrapped her blanket around herself. She was scared. Not much scared her, but this did. She felt her very blood temperature drop. Something shimmered before her.

"Do you know who I am?" Came a voice.

"Norg?" Nadia ventured.

"Yes." The voice laughed. "Long time no see Nadia. You enjoyed the years with my murderer?"

"Olose?" She whimpered.

"Ai ya Nadia! Of course Olose!" Norg's spirit told her. "You got so close. But I sense that if you speak with Olose, you will fail to see the truth."

"What? Why?" Nadia asked.

"Do you really think Olose doesn't have a back up plan? Or an excuse?" Norg asked. "The only way to do it is to attack."

"Norg. I don't believe in ghosts-" Nadia began.

"Stubborn as you ever were." Norg's spirit seemed to almost smirk. "Don't make me pull rank."

"I was kicked out of the army. Remember?" Nadia told him.

"How could I forget?" Norg replied. "I remember the party we held at the barracks."

"Nice to see you still have your old sense of humour, even in death." Nadia smiled weakly.

"My spirit is restless because he walks the land." Norg explained. "My murderer. Bring him to justice and I can sleep." The spirit faded away, and Nadia collapsed in disbelief.

"And you can sleep too, my dear." Abaj laughed evilly, before turning to the tarutaru mage at his feet. "You did well. That projection spell worked perfectly." He grinned a sinister smile. "That will be her final piece of evidence. Now I need to just sit back and watch the events unfold."

"You will finally have your revenge against Olose." The tarutaru laughed. "Congratulations."

"Yes. There's one lose end." Abaj hurled a dagger into the tarutaru's head, causing him to collapse dead. "You. You were a good mage, and enabled me to achieve my goals. But _no one _must know my plan. That hallucination drug we gave Nadia and that spell have done their duty. Her and Olose shall fight. Olose shall most likely be the victor, but that doesn't matter." He paused, relishing the silence. He enjoyed vocalising his plans. He somewhere enjoyed talking to the dead tarutaru, as if he would still appreciate the cunning of his plot. "No. It is not Olose I am interested in." He looked down at the corpse and decided to ask it a question. "If magical powers become so great when repressed for so long with Astra, what would happen if were to occur to a werewolf?" He laughed. "The lycanthropic blood, when it kicks in at puberty, would be more powerful than ever. And Olose's slut has just given birth to the third werewolf." He cackled. "And soon, she will be the most powerful creature in Vana'diel, entirely loyal-" He paused to appreciate the climax of his explanation. "-to me."


	56. The Battle Of The Heroes

**Author's Note: Here we go. The chapter before the big climax. The chapter title references something, the same thing this chapter has a few ideas taken from. Revenge of the Sith, and the idea of two friends turned against each other, I used a few of the ideas from that (but no real direct quotes). The title is the name of the music track for the final battle between Obi-Wan and Anakin, but I felt it suited here.**

**The drama is piled on for this chapter, which I'm not normally very good at. So sorry if it's a bit crappy.**

**CHAPTER 56**

**THE BATTLE OF THE HEROES**

Olose awoke with a jump. Arcadia slept peacefully next to him. Something was wrong. He could _feel _it. He got up slowly, as to not disturb his wife, and walked over to the nearby cot. Talia slept peacefully, undisturbed. He smiled warmly. But something was wrong. It felt as if the air hung heavily around him. Trouble was coming. He quickly slipped into his trousers and threw on his shirt and brown jacket, strapping his sword hilt to his belt. He knew he was much better off trusting his instincts.

He ran down the stairs quickly of the main hall, and saw Nadia stood before him. Arcadia's manor was huge, and the main hallway had balconies jutting out around it, as well as the main raised platform the stairs had led from. Nadia looked dwarfed in the middle of it all.  
"Nadia? What's wrong?" He quickly whispered. He didn't pick up any foul scent, but he just had a feeling.

"Nothing Olose." Nadia answered. "I actually think things are finally going to be put right."

"What?" Olose asked, confused, and still sleepy. Nadia drew a silver sword from her scabbard. "What are you doing, Nadia?" He quickly questioned.

"You got away with it for a long time Olose, but I found you out." She growled.

"Found out what?" Olose asked in confusion.  
"You _dare _stand there and pretend you don't know?" She yelled, lunging at him. Olose jumped back, quickly drawing his sword.

"Nadia! What the hell are you doing?" Olose bellowed.

"Getting revenge for Norg." She smiled.

"Norg? What? What's that got to do with attacking me?" Olose asked in shock.

"For Altana's sake Olose, stop playing dumb! I know. Abaj told me." She laughed.  
"Abaj?" Olose cried. "Abaj is alive?"

"Unlucky, huh? He happens to be your Leader friend." She smirked, swinging in for Olose's head. Olose blocked the blade and jumped back once more, trying to put distance between himself and Nadia.

"Stop this!" He yelled. "Abaj is alive? What did he say? What did he tell you?"

"The truth!" She spat.

"I don't know what he's said." Olose spoke quickly. "But he's lying."

"I found evidence. I found the letter." Nadia laughed.

"What letter?" Olose asked, startled.

"Norg's spirit even came to me to guide me. Don't hide it, Olose." Nadia lunged forwards again, and Olose blocked her sword to the side. She attacked again quickly, cutting Olose across his leg. Olose yelped as smoke hissed from the wound, and he leapt away. The silver weapon would mean his end, he knew, if she got a good blow.

"Stop this Nadia! You've been lied to! Tricked!" He screamed.

"Yes! By you!" Nadia countered.

"Abaj is evil!" Olose yelled.  
"He would say the same for you!" Nadia countered. "He only told me the truth. Nothing more."

"It is a lie!" Olose growled. "Everything we've been through, don't tell me that means nothing!"

"You murdered Norg!" Nadia wept. "I loved him and never told him! You _killed _him, so I'll kill you! Murderer!" She ran at him again, and Olose parried her to the side. She swung in again, but Olose leapt, his lycanthropic muscles allowing him to jump up to the balcony above.

"Nadia, don't make me fight back." Olose warned.

"Sorry, _Captain_." She snarled. "But that's one order I won't follow!"

"I will do what I must to stop you." Olose warned.

"Give it your best shot." Nadia laughed. "I know you, Olose, I know that this blade will kill you. Your immortality won't save you this time."

"Don't do this Nadia!" Olose begged. "You've been tricked! Manipulated! You can still turn back!"

"Turn back? You want me to do that, don't you?" She argued.

"_Yes!_" Olose exclaimed. "Please, Nadia, we're friends. Hell, we're practically siblings. Me and you. The legend of the _Destiny_. Don't do this! Let's sort this out!"

"It's all there Olose. I've seen Norg's spirit. I've seen the evidence. Even in the official elvaan logs." She seemed to almost be crying. "Olose. You betrayed me. I _hate _you!" She ran up the main stairs towards Olose. Olose leapt upwards onto the guard rail.

"And I loved you Nadia." He said simply. "You were like a sister to me."

"Don't give me that crap Olose!" Nadia snarled. "A brother wouldn't kill his sister's idol, would he?"

"I did _not _kill Norg!" Olose screamed.

"Liar!" Nadia kicked Olose to the chest, knocking him off of the rail. He crashed down on the ground fall of the main hall below. She ran up and leapt down, driving her blade downwards. Olose rolled to the side and got to her feet.

"Nadia, I loved you. You were my sister." He sighed heavily. "I'm sorry it has to end like this."

"So am I." Nadia replied angrily. The two swung their swords at each other and they clashed.

"_He's been hit badly. I couldn't stop them. They ambushed us!"_

"_Shee-niou orc cowards!"_

"_I'll get him back to town. I'm faster than any of you."_

"_I'll help the girl get back. I'll meet you at the barracks."_

"_Alright. See you back at the city." _

Olose ducked as Nadia swung and hit her in the face with the hilt of his sword. She stumbled back but swung in again. She was fast, using a very light silver rapier. It didn't take much to kill Olose with silver, and she was moving far faster than he was. She took the offensive and began to drive Olose back. Olose was left blocking wildly, until he got an opportunity and drove Nadia's sword to the ground, using his superior strength and the fact that she could only fight back with one arm. He hit her to the face with a left hook, knocking her to the ground. She swiped outwards and his feet, causing him to jump back, before twirling back to standing. She didn't pause before lunging at him with a snarl. Olose blocked overhead, and grabbed her wrist with his other hand. He pulled her to the ground before him and she lunged upwards. He sprang back, knowing that he had to dodge the silver blade. She charged at him once more instantly. Olose growled and charged her. The two swung their swords, causing them to clash with an echo that rang throughout the entire manor.

"_Olose? You're not Olose!"_

"_Nadia."_

"_You are him, aren't you?" _

"_I was."_

Nadia went for Olose's back and he blocked behind his back. The sword sprang back but she brought it about for another hit. He stopped it before him and pushed outwards, causing Nadia to stumble against the wall. She hit her head against it and shook off the pain.

"Please, Nadia!" Olose wept. "It's a lie!"

"The elvaan records don't lie, Olose." She angrily snapped.

"Look, if Abaj manipulated the events at Kazham and in San d'Oria, he could easily have been behind the Cardinal too. If he was, he could have easily gained access to the records." Olose suggested. "Let's talk about this! Norg was my friend too!"

"You want an excuse to talk your way out of this?" Nadia laughed. "What's the matter? Afraid you're losing?"

"Nadia, listen to me! I didn't do any of this!" He begged. "Don't make this go on! You're my friend! I Don't want to hurt you!" Tears were streaming down his face, seeing Nadia want to kill him. He couldn't stand it. What had Abaj done?

"You arrogant bastard!" Nadia lunged at him and Olose blocked it away. She swung her blade around at his head and he ducked again. She brought it back, swiping at his feet. He jumped over the blade and she brought it around for a stab. Olose pushed it aside with his own sword and sliced downwards, cutting Nadia diagonally across her forehead and down to her lip. She sliced upwards quickly, hitting Olose with her silver blade in the exact same way, leaving a burn mark running upwards across his face, much like she was left with a deep cut. Olose growled in pain and threw a powerful punch, slamming into Nadia. She stumbled backwards, every one of her senses pounding. Olose didn't attack. He stood there, waiting.

"Nadia. I'm not going to finish this." He stated.

"Your loss!" She ran at him and lunged. Olose sidestepped but she brought her blade around in a wide slice, cutting Olose across the chest. He screamed and fell to his knees.

"_Where are you going to go?"_

"_That little port town probably, the one that Bastok just constructed between themselves and San d'Oria. Seblina was it? I'll hit the waves. Get a boat, get a crew, keep sailing, nobody'll catch me out there."_

"_A life on the waves, leaving this place behind? Need a first mate?"_

"_Welcome aboard." _

Nadia lowered her blade to Olose's neck, and held it there, allowing it to burn against his flesh. Olose closed his eyes, growling in agony. Nadia paused.

"This is it, Olose." She was fully crying now, much like Olose. "I'm so sorry it ended like this."

"Nadia. It doesn't have too." Olose begged.

"Yes it does." She stated. "I'm sorry Olose. But it's destiny." She swung the blade, but as she did, wailing could be heard from upstairs. Talia was crying loudly. Nadia wavered for a moment, and that was all Olose needed. He sprang to his feet, sword in hand. He blocked Nadia's sword wide and then cut downwards, slicing off her hand. She screamed in agony and dropped to her knees, feeling sick with pain. Her sword, severed hand still clutching it, crashed to the floor.

"I'm sorry too, Nadia." Olose stated, throwing his sword to the ground. She held the bloody stump to her body, sobbing, looking up through blurry eyes. "I didn't kill Norg. I hope one day you can accept that." He explained. "When you do, I hope we can still be friends." He turned away from Nadia, who was sobbing on the floor.

"I HATE YOU!" She venomously yelled after him. "DO YOU HEAR ME? I HATE YOU!" Olose closed his eyes, letting the tears fall down them. He walked away quietly, trying to ignore her screaming behind him. "YOU MURDERER! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!" Echoed throughout the building. Olose suddenly perked up. He turned to the screaming, bloodied Nadia, and then looked around the building. Nobody was responding to the sound of the fight. Talia had stopped crying. Olose's eyes went wide.

"Nadia." He whispered in shock. "What have you done?" Nadia stopped screaming, and looked at him.  
"What?" She croaked.

"Arcadia! TALIA?" Olose bolted up the stairs at lightning speed, leaving Nadia behind.

He burst into the bedroom, and found Arcadia slumped against the dresser. He ran to the cot. It was empty. His eyes went wide.

"Arcadia!" He screamed hysterically. "ARCADIA? SPEAK TO ME!"

"I'm sorry Olose!" Arcadia sobbed. She was badly bruised, but alive. "He's taken her! I couldn't stop him!" Tears streamed down her face. Olose rose slowly.

"Abaj." He growled. He ran out of the room, his mind becoming single tracked. He didn't even care about Arcadia. All that mattered was saving his daughter.

He ran down past the sobbing Nadia and scooped up her silver sword.

"What's happening Olose?" She sobbed. Olose shot her a glare.

"Abaj has taken Talia." He answered.

"Oh goddess!" Nadia cried through her tears. "I-I swear I didn't know!"

"Save it Nadia." Olose replied. "I have an appointment to keep." He ran out of the manor at speeds only he could manage. He skidded into the street and ran. He could smell her scent. His daughter. Nobody was going to take her from him. _Nobody!_

He ran through the darkened street and thunder rumbled. Rain began to fall from the sky. Lightning crashed, lighting the streets. Had Olose been in any other mood, he would have observed just how dramatic it was becoming. As it was he ran without a second thought, skidding into a huge street, lined with buildings and shops. Abaj Tuh stood in the middle of it, holding Talia. Olose's child.

He laughed.

"Olose Sampson." He greeted. "I didn't expect that wench to finish the job."

"Abaj. Give me my daughter!" He yelled over the thundered rain. Talia was sobbing and squirming in his arms.

"Her?" Abaj smirked. "She's not your daughter anymore. She's _mine_."

"Give her to me!" Olose roared.

"If that poison could make Princess Astra so powerful, what would it do to a werewolf?" He asked. "Years of repressed lycanthropic urges finally breaking free at puberty. She'd be the most powerful werewolf ever. She'd be a God! And I would be in control of that god. Do you know what that makes me?"

"A crazed lunatic?" Olose growled.

"Greater than the Gods themselves." Abaj cackled.

"She is my daughter. You will _not _take her from me!" Olose spat. "You will not succeed in your plan!"

"I won't?" Abaj sounded honestly surprised. "No. I won't." He began to think. "Locked for years in the eternal pain of death but never being allowed to die. Can you know that pain?"

"Abaj, whatever happened to you was your own fault." Olose told him.

"Don't act so self righteous." Abaj spat. "I'll make you feel my pain."

"Abaj, if it's a fight your looking for, you've found one. Just leave my daughter alone." Olose stated.

"Oh no, Olose." Abaj laughed. "You misunderstand. You shall feel my pain. And your daughter shall be the key." Abaj placed his hand on Talia's head and pushed. A sickening snap filled the air.

Olose's world collapsed.

**Author's Note: I figured I needed to say something here after that chapter end. If you're a bit confused, yes Abaj _did _just kill Talia, a week old baby. Did I go too far? Probably, but I realised I needed a real climax, and have been planning this for quite a while. Talia was only introduced to die. I'm now hoping people will care a lot more about the outcome of Olose's final battle with Abaj, rather than it being 'he's evil and I'm good' which it normally is when I write. This time it's a lot more personal.**

**But did I go too far? This is still rated 'teen'. I know rating it as mature will lose me some audience since it'll disappear from the main page under usual browsing, but I really feel it may belong there with stuff like this happening in it. Any opinions on that would be appreciated.**

**I'd also like to point out I feel almost physically sick having to write that. I planned it and set it up with Talia's birth, but getting to writing it and I barely could. I mean, it's just so evil I felt really bad just writing it in a story. Hell, I felt evil. Sorry if it disturbed anybody as much as it disturbed me.**

**Hopefully now tomorrow's chapter will pack _a lot _more punch.**

**It's worth pointing out this chapter was edited to fix an error TheFrogKiller pointed out (thanks!) where Nadia was somehow clutching the bloody stump of her arm….with no hands. That's the second time I've done something like that!**

**Word of advice, never have a one armed character. They're hard to write!**


	57. The Climatic Battle

**Author's Note: Yeah, killing Talia was dark. It was because I realised I couldn't have a final confrontation with Abaj without it being like all the others, unless he did something _really _evil. Abaj was always supposed to be Olose's rival, but on the grand scheme of things, he's no worse than any of the other villains. So I knew I had to do something to make this finale special. To make him evil and hated. So I came up with the idea of him murdering Olose's child.**

**And I know it's a break in character for me to do it, believe me, I didn't _like _doing it, but it certainly makes for a dramatic ending. It also makes Olose a more interesting character, he's always taken everything in his stride, he's almost been too 'perfect' at times (which is why I think I got irritated writing him as a main character at times) but this is different. I introduced Talia purely for the reason to have Abaj kill her for this finale. And even then, I nearly chickened out. Just the day before writing yesterday's chapter I reconsidered, and almost didn't do it, and just have him kidnap the child and Olose rescue her. Yeah, I'm a wimp.**

**And funny TheFrogKiller mentions killing Arcadia, I did consider that. I also considered him murdering the entire crew in one idea I had. (That was going to be interesting, Nadia was going to kill Jeren while fighting Trevia, Suse was going to take a wound for Olose as Abaj tried to kill him and so on). But in the end I decided it would be more dramatic to just focus on one death, making it very focused. I dunno if it's better or not, but I at least found it easier to write this way.**

**Oh, and thanks for pointing that mistake out by the way! I'm angry I didn't spot it myself, I wrote the fight really carefully to make sure Nadia didn't do anything with two arms, and completely missed that! I've gone back and changed it now. Sorry for keep pointing out problems in your story by the way. I mean, I do it in all reviews, I'm always nitpicking things. It's a surprise anybody puts up with me, between my whining in author's notes and criticising other people in reviews. I'm only ever trying to help people improve, but I doubt it reads like that.**

**Right, anyway, I'll shut up now and get on with the climax. These author's notes are becoming more of a blog! And that _cannot _be good.**

**CHAPTER 57**

**THE CLIMATIC BATTLE**

Abaj flung the limp body of the baby aside. Olose's entire body convulsed. He felt as if he was going to throw up. He emitted a small whimper sound as his eyes began to tear up. Olose dropped to his knees. He couldn't think. His mind wouldn't accept what just happened. It couldn't have happened. It simply couldn't have.

"Yes, this is worth it." Laughed Abaj, walking over to Olose. "Sacrificing my plan to stand over the fallen hero, although can you really call yourself that if you just give up?" He snarled.

"She was my daughter." Olose said quietly.

"To watch as he refuses to even fight back. To even _stand up_. To know that I have beaten him." He cackled loudly.

"I loved her." Olose muttered in a barely audible whisper.

"And to know that you can kill me now, you could even defeat me, and it won't bring her back." Abaj smirked.

"We were going to do so much together." Olose said tearfully. "I was going to raise her, look after her, train her to fight, teach her to read, I was going to love her and be with her forever."

"To know that the pain you suffer will never go away!" Abaj's rant was utterly uninterrupted by Olose's muttering. "To watch you realise your own immortality is turned against you. That you shall live until the end of time suffering! Feeling the pain that I felt, _forever_! It will never leave you! It will never get better!" Abaj's words fell on deaf ears. Olose heard nothing.

"I loved her." He whimpered. "We were going to do so much. She was my daughter. You can't of taken her." He wept into the ground as his body collapsed. "You can't. This is a dream, I'll- I'll wake up and everything will be fine."

"Broken! Defeated! This is my vengeance at its finest!" Abaj laughed. "_That _is why you're so pathetic. We're immortal! Gods among men! But you, you bind yourself to those pathetic mortals, and look what it has done to you."

"This-" Olose wept. "This isn't a dream." He whimpered in realisation. "No. She's gone. She's gone. You took her from me." Tears streamed down her face. "Abaj. You took her from me."

"And I am already victorious." Abaj smiled to himself. Olose's mind exploded.

"_ABAJ!_" He suddenly sprang to his feet and drove his fist into Abaj's gut with all the strength his rage had to deliver. The result was astounding.

Abaj soared into the air and crashed down on the ground at the end of the street. The strength of the werewolves at its finest. Olose grabbed Nadia's silver sword and charged Abaj. Abaj rose to his feet, sneering and drawing his own blade, it too silver.

"Ah, yes. This is it! The ultimate finale! _AND MY VENGEANCE!_" Abaj screamed as Olose charged him. Olose was blinded by anger. His words meant nothing. The environment around him meant nothing. All he could see was Abaj and his dead daughter. Talia. Killed. His grip on the sword tightened until his hand was white from the pressure. Abaj was running at him too. The two warriors charged each other, and swung their silver blades. The swords clashed. The climatic battle began.

The strength of the two opponents were too much for any blade to contain. The silver swords shattered as they hit each other, exploding. Shards of silver flew in every direction, cutting and scarring both warriors, sending smoke into the air. Lightning crashed behind them as Olose threw the first punch, slamming into Abaj's ribcage. It shattered every bone there and sent Abaj rocketing into the second floor of a nearby shop. He crashed through the stone wall like it was paper. Olose ran and leapt up into the building, through the hole he had created.

Abaj was already stood there, and kicked. Olose shot back down into the street below and crashed into a chocobo cart. They weren't even in their werewolf forms. They didn't need to be. Not anymore. The anger both felt gave them unbelievable strength, strength the human form wasn't ever supposed to contain. Abaj leapt down at Olose, but Olose had already picked up one of the wheels from the cart and thrown it at Abaj like a disk. It slammed into Abaj and knocked him out of the air, the wood shattering and splintering in all directions. Olose took the opportunity as Abaj was falling, and ran in, kicking him in the chest with all his rage behind it.

Abaj shot through the building behind him, an item shop, and crashed out the other side. Olose stared through the hole at where Abaj had landed. Abaj growled. The two ran at each other, hitting each other inside the shop.

Olose through a punch and Abaj blocked it, his arm shattering in the process, the bones unable to hold back the strength of the punch. His arm quickly regenerated as Abaj through a punch if his own. Olose didn't need to block it, there was no point. Nothing could stop hits that powerful, and he'd just break his arm as he did to Abaj. The punch hit him and he rocketed through the wall, crashing into the weapons shop next door.

Olose quickly hurled whatever weapons came to him. Swords, spears and knives, all thudding into Abaj's body. Abaj was momentarily stunned as Olose ran and tackled him, the two crashing back out into the street and the lashing rain. Abaj got to his feet, hurling the weapons lodged in him to the floor.

"This is it!" He shouted over the thundering rain. "The end!"

"I will kill you, Abaj." Olose said plainly.

"Oh no, Olose. You don't understand." Laughed Abaj. "This isn't the twilight of the immortal as it was last time. Not any more. This is the dawn of the immortal! The dawn of my rule! Tonight, I will defeat you and then the world shall be mine!"

"You're crazy, Abaj." Olose began to speak.

"The pain _you _inflicted on me, Olose, is the cause of _THAT!_" Abaj slammed into Olose, sending him flying down the street and slamming into a building at the end, sending stone fragments flying everywhere. Abaj charged once more, and Olose grabbed the shards of stone, hurling them Abaj as he approached. They slammed into Abaj, tripping him over and knocking him to the floor. Olose ran at him before he could get up, moving with superhuman speed.

"Don't you talk to me about _PAIN_!" Olose screamed, kicking Abaj in the ribs and sending him rocketing straight up. Olose leapt into the air and slammed Abaj downwards, causing him to crash into the stone street, rocketing down it like a meteor. Abaj got up and hurled a stone fragment at Olose, hitting him and distracting him enough for Abaj to deliver a strike that sent Olose rocketing through the air and crashing into the upper floor of a tavern.

Olose climbed out of the fragments of the bed he had crashed into, in a luckily unoccupied room. Thunder crashed and lightning flashed as Abaj leapt through the hole. Olose was quick and hit Abaj hard. Abaj countered, slamming Olose with an overhead strike so powerful that the floor beneath the two immortals collapsed and they plummeted into the bar below.

People screamed and ran as the two warriors locked, tearing at each other and trying to overcome each other through their own strength. The two pushed against each other before Abaj, his mind much clearer than Olose's, dropped backwards and kicked Olose over him, using Olose's own strength to propel him. Olose crashed out of the tavern wall and into the street on the other side.

"You're pathetic!" Snarled Abaj as Olose got up. "Why keep fighting? It won't bring her back! She's dead!"

"I will have my vengeance, Abaj." Olose stated.

"Your vengeance will bring you no peace." Cackled the evil monster. "You hero types are all the same. You think that defeating me will make the loss of your daughter go away? That it will be any easier in _any _way? You can't win Olose! The winner of this fight has already been decided, and it's me."  
"You-" Olose fell to his knees again. "Took my daughter, from me. From Arcadia. You took our daughter from us." He looked up, tears mixed with rain blinding him. "She was a week old, Abaj! A _week_! Take me! Take Arcadia! But not _her_! She's completely innocent! She didn't even have a chance to live!" He sobbed.

"And that's what makes it so painful." Abaj taunted. "Yes, I considered killing your wench, but I knew that she had lived, she had a life. Stealing one that never got one. Now _that _is the way to anger you."

"She never had a chance." Olose muttered. "She never had a chance. You took it from her. And you took her from _ME_!" Olose sprang upwards, tackling Abaj and charging with him down the street. He threw Abaj with incredible force at the building at the end of the street. Abaj crashed into it with such incredible strength the entire building caved in upon him. Olose stood there panting for a moment before Abaj burst out, in his complete werewolf form, black fur almost invisible against the night sky.

"YOU CANNOT DEFEAT ME!" He roared. "YOU CANNOT! I AM IMMORTAL!" He charged at Olose, who had used Abaj's yelling to take on his own werewolf form, and the two beasts clashed.

If the street couldn't contain their rage before, this time the city couldn't contain them. Abaj swiped, clawing down Olose's face. Olose kicked Abaj with all of his strength, and Abaj rocketed through the building and crashed directly through the outer wall of Tavnazia. Olose ran at him on all fours, but Abaj had already righted himself and lunged at Olose. He hit Olose and Olose shot backwards across the city in the same direction, slamming into the cliff that surrounded Tavnazia, triggering a huge rockslide, burying the hero.

"It is over, Olose." Abaj panted. "Over! I WON!" He roared. "Get up Olose! I'm not done with you! You won't take my vengeance from me! No, you won't! This can't be over!"

"_YOU'RE DAMMED RIGHT!_" A blur of grey fur tackled Abaj and he flew outside of the city once more, crashing down in the forest that surrounded it. Abaj couldn't stand before Olose was upon him, sticking his claw through Abaj's chest and hurling him, using Abaj's own internal organs as a handle to get his grip on. Abaj crashed down by the river. "Look familiar, Abaj?" Olose screamed. "You killed me here, all those years ago!"

"Well, I'm sorry to be repetitive." Abaj smirked.

"You took everything from me. You murdered my entire race. You turned Nadia against me. You caused the death of my family. You even killed me, Abaj." He began to walk towards the beast. "But _her_. Why did you kill _her? WHY? _She was a child! She was innocent! She didn't even experience life! _WHY DID YOU DO IT?_" Tears streamed from Olose's werewolf face, running down the fur.

"Because it hurts." Abaj answered. "It hurts you."

"Yes, Abaj. It hurt me." Olose muttered, the strength in his voice failing. "It hurt me. _AND I'LL SHOW YOU JUST HOW MUCH!_" Olose sprang at Abaj once more, this time tackling him into the river. The two splashed down, the river running red with their blood as they clashed.

The two smashed against the shore, and before Abaj could get to his feet Olose struck upwards. Abaj rocketed completely clean of the woods, breaking down the trees as he did so. Olose ran at him, and Abaj struck Olose as he approached, sending Olose flying into the distance. Olose crashed down painfully, forming a crater as he did so. Abaj tore across the landscape at incredible speed. Abaj struck Olose, knocking him back again. He tore at Olose, ripping into his flesh. He tore chunks of Olose's skin from him and held them in his claws. He picked Olose up and threw him once more, again Olose sailing into the night.

The wounds in Olose regenerated as he stood in the field, seeing Abaj approach. Lighting struck being him, causing his silhouette to stand out clearly. Olose flung the strike as Abaj got close enough. Abaj struck too. The two warriors hit each other and shot off in opposite directions.

Olose got to his feet, his wounds still regenerating, dazed from the attack. Abaj suffered no such problem and was on top of him quickly, ripping at him again. Olose threw Abaj off, high into the sky. Abaj crashed down in another wood. The warriors had travelled that far. It wasn't any wood. It was _that _wood. Lycan wood. Where it had all started. The battle had taken them to there, as if it was destiny luring them to it. This was where, one way or the other, it would end.

Olose tore across the landscape, approaching Abaj. He slammed him down onto _that _path. Where he had met Arcadia. Abaj crashed down in the mud, but Olose didn't stop. He let out a terrific scream as he tore into Abaj. He didn't just tear into his flesh. He tore his _apart_. He ripped at Abaj until there was nothing less. Abaj managed a final howl just before Olose managed to tear off his head.

Olose stood there, panting. He fell to his knees. It was over. He stared at the bloody mess of guts in front of him, all that was left of his arch nemesis. Abaj was right. It didn't bring him peace. It didn't bring her back. Olose's werewolf form slipped away as he knelt there, naked, screaming into the air in agony, in the very place where everything had begun so long ago.

Two weeks later Olose stood over a small stone, alone. 'Talia Sampson' was inscribed upon it. He had visited it everyday. Arcadia had barely been able to make the journey. Her sorrow was so great she couldn't face it. But he'd be there. Somehow as if it would make up for never being able to care for her. Never being able to raise her. He couldn't be there for her life. He'd be there in her death. He'd never forget her. For as long as he'd live, he'd never forget her.

Once again he fell to his knees, weeping. She was gone. He'd never be able to care for her. To raise her. She was murdered before his eyes. Everything Abaj had said was true. The pain didn't go away. Abaj Tuh was dead, but that wouldn't bring him peace. Not ever. She was gone. Her chance at life snatched away. He'd never be able to raise her, never able to give her that life. It was his fault. Abaj had done it to get vengeance on him. He had got her killed. It was all his fault. All of it! He had killed her! And she was gone, forever, because of him!

Olose cried into the ground, curled up before the grave. Somebody was behind him.

"Olose. I'm so sorry." A broken voice managed to say. "Oh goddess, I'm _so _sorry." It was Nadia. "I didn't know."

"Nadia." He stated. "Leave. Now."

"Olose, please, I'm so sorry." Nadia sobbed. "I had no idea. I was tricked."

"I know, Nadia." Olose said simply. "I could have saved her. He would never have taken her, were it not for you." He gulped. "I _want _to forgive you Nadia. I don't want to blame you. But I do." Nadia let out a loud whimper.

"You have every right to." She said quietly. "I don't deserve forgiveness. I can't expect it."

"We were all to blame, Nadia. I-I got her killed as much as you." Olose had replayed that conversation with Abaj in his mind a hundred times. That moment. When he had chosen to take her life. Abaj's unstable psyche had been thrown off balance by Olose's words. Dammit, if only he'd been more careful! He'd give anything to replay those moments. Anything. "I-" He paused. "Nadia. I forgive you. I can't quell that feeling of anger for you. Not yet. I think I need time." He looked down at the grave. "It still hasn't sunk in, you know? That she's gone."

"It still hasn't sunk in that I've lost you." Nadia wept. "You were my best friend, my brother, my captain, and I threw it all away because I'm stupid."

"I'm still here." Olose sobbed. "I'm still here. We can make things up. But she's gone. Forever. Taken from me. There is no vengeance. There is no peace. She's gone forever and she'll never come back." He turned to Nadia, who had the end of her arm still wrapped in a bandage. Life was going to be much more difficult for her now. "Head to Bastok." He told her. "Their engineers might have something there for you. Something to make your life easier."

"Olose, I-" Nadia began.

"Perhaps, when you come back, I will have had enough time. I'll be able to look you in the eyes and forgive you." Olose let the tears run down his face. "Please, Nadia, go."

Nadia turned and left Olose, knelt before that gravestone, weeping for his lost daughter.

She was never coming back.

**Author's Notes: Urm, now you've read that, I have to say I'm not sure if I overplayed it. For starters, the way the final battle works is a new one for me, but that's because I didn't want it to be like all the other fights, so I had them flinging each other around. I'm also aware it seems slightly cheap that they ended up in Lycan Woods at the end, as well as slightly unbelievable, but I figured it was the most dramatic location, and helped emphasise just how hard they were hitting each other. That's supposed to be a side effect of their werewolf strength, being able to hit each other around like rag dolls. Hopefully it worked to make it dramatic without being over the top or too comical, I'm not really sure, first time I've written like that before.**

**I'm also aware I also slightly overdid the italic yelling, but I figured it was the best way to convey their rage. I hope that didn't seem too corny either.**


	58. The End

**Author's Notes: I'm kind of sad to present this, the end. It's very short, but wrapping it up chapters have always been a weakness of mine. But this is it, after 57 chapters, 213 pages, 164256 words (half of which I'm sure is author's notes) and over two months of writing a chapter a day (with a few failures), this is the end. I'm actually going to save any notes on how it's the end until afterwards, so this is to address just a couple of reviews about the ending.**

**I'm very glad to see people found the last chapter powerful, and not too over the top or ridiculous. In regards to the baby being killed instead of a main character, I was careful in my decision there. The characters people are attached to it would be very sad to kill off, but from Olose's perspective, and Abaj's, instead of the audience, it's much more sadistic and cruel to kill the baby. That's why I overplayed the emphasis on the whole 'never given a chance at life' thing, every other character had a life, and Abaj could argue for why they should die (Arcadia for example, she may have been kind, but she was also a member of the upper class and not exactly giving her money to the poor). I felt killing a week old baby was just as sadistic as it could get, and snapping their spine in two in front of the father…**

**Well, you can see why I wanted to rate it mature. I mean, in a lot of other stories characters get put through a lot, as TheFrogKiller points out, but this was a baby. One version I was going to write, if it didn't make me feel sick thinking about it (which is actually true, and why I didn't write it) Abaj didn't just kill her, he _ate _her. I was really trying to make everybody hate Abaj at the end to make the final battle have so much more meaning. I'm not sure if it worked, but it certainly gave Olose the motivation to really despise him. I'm actually quite proud of the emotion in the final battle, even if the style it's in could be perceived as very over the top, and it might feel a bit corny.**

**Anyway, I'll shut up and save my long notes for after the chapter. Read on!**

**CHAPTER 58**

**THE END**

Silence filled the room for a moment. Olose had a grim look on his face as he remembered that battle with Abaj. He managed to hold back his own tears, unlike Vivli, sat opposite him, who was crying.

"I had no idea." She said softly. Ever since she had heard Olose's story about marriage she had been wondering about Olose's past life. He had finally agreed to sit down and tell it to her. He had told her everything he could remember about those days. His first lifetime, as he called it. "What happened next?" Vivli croaked. Olose stood up.

"Some things are stories for other times, Viv." Olose said quietly, standing up. "We never had another child. Arcadia was never really the same after that. She was kind of distant, separated. I was the same."

"What about Nadia?" Vivli asked. "Did you forgive her?"

"Yes, of course I did." Olose smirked slightly. "She didn't exactly have an easy life after that."

"And Jeren and Trevia? Did they actually get married?" Vivli was getting carried away with questions.

"Viv, another time." Olose stated. Vivli could see that he was finding it painful to talk on the subject anymore.

"Sorry." She muttered. "I had no idea you had gone through so much."

"You know, I visited that grave every day. Then every week. Then every month. Then every year." He shook his head. "But I never stopped. I was there, you know, when the beastmen hoard tore through Tavnazia and destroyed it. I fought them back, but in the end, I failed to protect her again."

"It was an army at Tavnazia." Vivli pointed out. "You couldn't have done anything."

"No. I couldn't." Olose admitted. "I kind of thought that the pain would have stopped, but it's still there. It has almost been six centuries now. Six centuries and I still feel the pain." Vivli looked at him tearfully, and placed her tiny hand on his shoulder.

"It's alright." She told him softly.

"I know, Viv. I've learnt to live with it. You have to, when you're immortal." Olose explained. "You now know more about me than anybody on this planet. I've never told anybody about my old life before."

"Thank you." Vivli said quietly.

"No, thank you, Viv." Olose told her. "It's about time I talked about it."

The sun was beginning to rise, still below the horizon, but casting a faint glow. Twilight. Olose stood alone, looking down. He heard footsteps behind him, and he smiled. He had smelt her coming, but had remained silent.

"I thought you might be here." Vivli said. Olose looked down at the stone. 'Talia Sampson' inscribed upon it, still readable, despite being faded and eroded.  
"Funny the graves survived." Olose laughed, the ruins of Tavnazia all around him. Vivli walked up beside him, looking at them. 'Arcadia Sampson' was inscribed on the one next to it. Vivli wrapped her arms around Olose.

"She died too?" Vivli asked.

"Of course." Olose answered grimly. "She wasn't immortal. Everybody died. Except me of course. Never me." Vivli looked down at the graves. "You know, I can't even picture their faces. Six hundred years and I can barely remember what they look like. Arcadia, I can just about see her. Her eyes, her lips, her nose, but it's faded. Blurry. Memory was never supposed to last this long."

"Olose-" Vivli began.

"But I can still see her. I can see her in Abaj's arms. I can hear that crack, and see her be tossed aside. I've never forgotten, Vivli." This time Olose did not hold back his tears. "I-I lost my daughter." He croaked. "Before she even had a chance to live." Vivli said nothing, but held him quietly. "And nothing I say or do will ever bring her back. Give her that chance that was stolen from her. And it _never _stops hurting." Vivli kept a hold of him, which wasn't easy, since he was much taller than she was. Her arms were instead wrapped around his stomach and her head pressed against his chest. She was trying to be comforting all the same. "I lost a lot of people." Olose continued. "Everybody I've ever know has died. But this is the one that always hurts. Even Arcadia, the woman I loved, I can move on from. But not my daughter."

"It hurts." Vivli admitted. "It'll always hurt. Nothing's going to make you feel better."

"Viv, I'm over six hundred years old. I've heard all of the 'comfort speak'." Olose joked, but Vivli let him go and fell silent. Clearly she was hurt by the comment.

"I was only trying to help." She said sadly.

"Thanks Viv." Olose told her gently. "I appreciate it. It's nice to be open for a change."

"This mean your going to tell me the rest of the story?" Vivli asked. "What happened afterwards?"

"One day I might." Olose laughed.

"Aw, please?" Vivli begged.

"It's long. And gets fairly complicated." Olose admitted. "You know Queen Astra is famous right. You ever find out what for?" Vivli paused while Olose smirked. "I was involved in that." He paused. "And do you remember how Abaj said that it was the dawn of the immortal?"

"Yeah." Vivli answered curiously.

"He was more right than he knew."

Elsewhere, amongst the ruins of Tavnazia, a figure watched the two speak. He smirked slightly.

"The past is gone, but never forgotten." He said to himself.

**Final Notes: Now, I know I tend to blather in my notes, and am worried readers have given up reading them by this point, so I'll get this out of the way right away in gigantic capitals: THANK YOU. If you've read this far, then you've sat through 58 chapters, you've put up with my whining, which has sometimes left chapters as small bits of dialogue encased in two massive author's notes in which I generally feel sorry for myself, and you've read the entire thing. And that means a lot to me. I can't thank you enough.**

**But I'm incredibly selfish, so I still need to ask a favour. If you've read this far, then you've invested a lot of time. And I mean a lot. Reading this many chapters, putting up with all my crap, it can't have been easy. That means, all I ask is you take just a minute or two to leave me a review and tell me what you thought. You can slam it if you want, tell me I suck, if that's what you think. I just love receiving opinions, and after reading this far, what's two minutes to leave me a review? Remain anonymous if you don't like me knowing who you are, I don't mind! I just really want to hear from everybody. Plus I know how many people have read and not reviewed with the new hit counter now!**

**Speaking of reviews, I can't thank my current reviewers enough. They're great, and always encouraging. I mean, they really make me feel good about myself. Even criticism is helpful and I love receiving it, so I really appreciate everybody. This includes reviewers who may not have reviewed yet, but review later! I want to go by name, and say thanks individually, but I'm worried I'll forget somebody and they'll feel really bad. Suffice to say I've had lots of reviewers who had stuck with me, not just for this story, but all the other ones too. Phabrizoe even made it into the story, and he helped me decide to even write this one, and not another chronicles story. So thanks a million guys. I mean, I can't thank the people who take the time to read this story enough, so the people who review/have reviewed and made me feel really good about myself, well, there's very little I can say to make you understand how much I appreciate you.**

**And yes, I've ignored TheFrogKiller until now, 'coz he deserves his own special thanks. You see, I ran into a lot of trouble on this story, and he really helped me with it, a lot. The plot line in Kazham was mostly his creation, Trevia, Jeren and Jacob were his characters (although Jacob was named something else and I got the name wrong stupidly) and he's been helping me along at all points. Not to mention he's the one who has always reviewed for me from the start, reviewing every chapter since the FFXI Chronicles was first posted. I don't think I'd of gone beyond the first story without his constant encouragement, so this is a really huge thank you to him (and a reminder, give him credit, he came up with some of the characters and plot and really helped me). I don't dedicate stories, least I never have, but if I did, it would be to him.**

**Now, this is the difficult bit. Because this is goodbye, of a sorts. I haven't played FFXI in months, and the chances of me writing another FFXI story is very slim. Which makes me really sad, because its great writing FFXI fiction, the community is nice and small and easy to keep track of, nothing just gets lost into the bowels of a thousand or so stories, and I've come to really appreciate my readers. But, considering I've grown so distant from FFXI I couldn't write fan fiction that really fits in anymore (this story strayed by miles, you may have noticed) and the impending doom of university where my time will be eaten up, this is probably my last story. Or at least, my last very long one. I'll still be here, reviewing everybody else's the best I can, but I doubt I'll write much more.**

**But don't worry! If you like my writing, I have a month before I go to uni, and I have an idea to write a Guild Wars fan fiction in that time. Now, I'm guessing you'll be thinking 'but I don't play Guild Wars!' which is why what I'll do if I do write it is put 'explanatory notes' at the start, so people who haven't played the game can read it if they so wish. I dunno if it's arrogant of me to assume people will want to read another story from me, but I feel kind of guilty leaving loyal readers behind, so I'll try and write one that's nice and readable for anybody.**

**Also, it's possible that there will be 'bonus' chapters of a type to this, possibly even another short story based on Twilight of the Immortal. TheFrogKiller and myself are working on ideas for a story that resolves Jeren and Trevia's plot, since we never really found out what happened to them, and I may even do a series of epilogues, revealing what happened to Nadia now she has no hands and Phabrizoe and his problems with Windurst. But I'm not sure yet.**

**Oh, and I guess you're pretty curious about the ending. That's ideas from the sequel which I'm almost definitely not going to write. I'll tell you the ideas though, so you're not left confused. The title, as implied, would have been The Dawn Of The Immortal. I haven't really decided if I'd set it in the same timeline as this one, or Olose's 'second lifetime', but it would probably be a bit of both. The main plot line would have revolved around the werewolves turning out to be less dead than Olose thought, and returning to try and take over Vana'diel, leaving only Olose to oppose them. Other adventures would have included Astra and her power turning a little sinister, and other mini adventures like this one did, but I haven't really thought of those yet.**

**So who was that figure at the end? Good question. Dawn of the Immortal would have had lots of werewolves still alive, some good, some bad, so maybe it's a surviving immortal friend of Olose. Alternatively, you have to consider that the werewolves can regenerate, and Abaj was ripped apart. Was that enough to kill him? (Funnily enough, the plot to FFXI Chronicles 4 which I never wrote had Abaj revealed as the villain, having survived).**

**Anyway, I think that's all I have to say. Stay tuned for epilogue chapters/short stories/something coming at some point hopefully, but I can't be sure when, or watch my profile for when I do that Guild Wars story (if you're interested), and once again, if you're reading this right now, all I can say is THANK YOU so much for reading this. I really appreciate it.**

**Well then, I guess this is goodbye from me (for now). Thanks everybody!**


	59. Bonus: I Do

**Author's Note: Well, this is a surprise. A bonus chapter/short story to Twilight of the Immortal. Now, I cannot stress this enough, I DID NOT WRITE THIS. I repeat, I am NOT the author of this story. TheFrogKiller wrote this story revolving around the fate of Jeren and Trevia from Twilight of the Immortal. I'm just posting it as part of Twilight. So give him credit, not me! I cannot stress that enough, I didn't write this! That's why it's suddenly so much better than the rest of the story! Anyway, this counts as a bonus chapter, written by TheFrogKiller because he's cool. More of a short story really, being much much longer than anything I could write as a chapter. Anyway, enjoy!**

**I DO**

Jeren and Trevia were out in the courtyard of Arcadia's mansion. The two were dressed in loose cloth and leather armor. Wielding bokkens's, the two Mithra were sparring. Jeren charged out swinging high at Trevia. She ducked under the swing rolling under his attack Trevia popped up behind him. Swinging downward Jeren switched stances bringing the sword up around his back. Blocking the swing he pushed Trevia back.

"So… have you thought anymore about us getting married?" Jeren asked

This time Trevia attacked first. Going low she swung upwards. Jeren pushed his weapon forward to block the attack. Weapons locked Trevia spoke.

"I'm not the kind of girrrl who settles down and starrrts a family." Trevia answered

Jeren pushed Trevia back again. Grinning he spoke.

"How about a I make a deal with you." Jeren asked

"Yeah… what's that?" Trevia shot back

Jeren swung again at Trevia. She brought her sword up blocking again.

"If I can beat you in a duel, you have to marry me. If I lose, I'll never bring it up again." Jeren proposed

Trevia grinned. Jumping away from Jeren she laughed.

"Ok… it's a deal, however, you have to completely disarrrm me of all my weapons and armor. With no way of fighting back, you have to pin me." Trevia said

"You tease me too much." Jeren said

Jeren dropped his bokken. Drawing his katana he charged at Trevia. Slicing her bokken in two Trevia dropped her broken weapon. Jeren swung again this time aiming for Trevia's belt. Trevia fell back and drew two kunai's. Taking a defensive stance she took one look at Jeren, then ran the other way. Jumping up onto the wall she dug the kunai's into the wall. Climbing up she got to a balcony and ran into the mansion.

Trevia took off through the hallways finding herself in the main hall. She stopped, trying to focus, her ears twitched trying to listen for Jeren. Closing her eyes she stood motionless.

"_You can't catch me!" Trevia called out_

_Jeren chased Trevia down the streets of Khazam. Dodging through alleys and streets Trevia thought she had out witted Jeren. But there he was standing behind her._

"_Gotcha." Jeren said_

Jeren was standing up on the railing above Trevia. With his sword sheathed he dropped down behind her. With a sheepish grin he pulled her tail. Trevia swung around; Jeren put a hand up blocking a swing. The two kept trading blows, but none of them connected. Each of them kept throwing fists to strike one another but each strike was caught or deflected.

Jeren took an open opportunity and reached low to the belt she wore. A lucky shot he snapped the buckle and pulled the belt off. Trevia jumped back with both her kunai's drawn. Jeren stepped back. With Trevia's belt over his shoulder he drew his katana.

"What do you have in here anyway?" Jeren asked

There at lest a dozen pockets with pouches sewn on them.

"Caltrops, smoke bombs, flash powder. What is this? A silver dagger?" Jeren asked

"You'll be surprised what other toys I have." Trevia said

"_Damnit, how do you keep catching me?" Trevia asked_

_Jeren laughed._

"_You're easy to follow. I've been watching how you act. You easily trick people into thinking your running one way when you go in an opposite direction. But I can always see through it." Jeren said_

_Trevia sighed looking to the ground._

"_So I'm sure you've heard the news." Trevia spoke softly_

"_Oh what news?" Jeren asked_

"_That one day, we are to be married." Trevia answered_

"_Oh that, yeah. Hey if you think about it the whole thing might be some fun." Jeren laughed_

_Trevia didn't laugh._

"_How can I be your wife if I'm so weak?"_

Trevia held her two kunai's to the side. Jeren turned his katana around. The flat wide end of the weapon faced outwards. He swung the sword. Trevia threw up a guard with one of her kunai's. With the force of Jeren's attack it knocked the weapon right out of her hand.

"I think I may have trained you a little too well." Trevia said

She turned and ran once again. Taking off down the hallway Jeren took chase once again.

"_I have to leave. If I'm not strong enough to even beat you I couldn't let myself be the one who has to look after you." Trevia said_

_She looked up to Jeren. Trevia was only 12 years old. Jeren, who was only a year older looked down at her upset._

"_But there's no reason for you to leave. I don't care about how skilled you are. I just care about you." Jeren cried_

_Trevia walked close to him._

"_I'm sorry." Trevia said. "I just can't yet."_

_Trevia walked onto the boat that was headed for the main land. _

Trevia had to keep out running Jeren. All she had left was her Kunai. It was hard to keep running in all the armor she was wearing. Using her weapon she cut the restraints keeping it attached to her. Dropping them along the ground behind her she threw more down an opposite hallway. Turning back Trevia dashed around a corridor. Running into Jeren he put an arm out grabbing the wrist of the hand that held her final weapon. Stealing it Trevia writhed out of his grip. Running past him Jeren ran after her. Closing in once again he grabbed her by the waist. Tripping over Trevia's clothes they fell to the ground. Rolling over one another they stopped with Jeren on top, pinning Trevia to the ground.

"It looks like victory is mine." Jeren stated

Trevia looked away blushing. Jeren leaned down and kissed her.

At that moment Olose, followed by Arcadia, stepped out into the hallway.

"There are 30 rooms with beds in this place… and you chose the main hallway…" Olose joked

Trevia brought a leg around and kicked Jeren off of herself. Rolling out from under him she walked back to collect her clothes. Jeren lied on the floor with a grin on his face.

"What are you smiling about?" Olose asked

With a huge grin on his face he spoke.

"That woman there is going to be my wife." Jeren said proudly

Olose looked at Trevia oddly.

"So… she's finally going to get married. It's about time too. I'm sure she'll finally loosen up once she gets…" Olose tried to say

Trevia threw her armor at him smacking him in the face cutting him off.

"I would appreciate it if you wouldn't be so crude about it." Trevia snapped

Over the following days Arcadia found it her job to organize Trevia and Jeren's wedding. She had the entire mansion dressed up for the occasion. Trevia was being tended too by three people. Each one of them was going over her body with lengths of string.

"So what kind of design were you thinking of?" One of the three asked

"I don't wear drrresses." Trevia complained

"Oh come on Trevia. You only need to wear it once." Arcadia said

She walked around Trevia.

"What color would you like it to be?" Another one of the tailors asked

"Black." Trevia bluntly said. "I don't like anything other then darrrk colorrrs."

"It's a little unorthodox for the bride to wear anything but white or lighter colors." The tailor said

"Why is that?" Trevia asked

"White is a representation of purity and innocence." He said

Trevia started cracking up.

"That's the exact opposite of me." Trevia laughed

"Its also the sign of virginity." He said

Trevia stopped laughing. Blushing she looked to the floor.

"I guess you could put a little white in it." Trevia said bashfully

At the end of the day Trevia was able to finally get away from everyone. Once all of her friends found out she was getting married she couldn't get any time alone.

"That's right… this is how it used to be. Before I met any of them. Before I met that cursed man." Trevia

Closing her eyes she just sighed. Standing up she jumped off of the roof. As she fell she threw a kunai into the wall. At the end of it was a rope, which Trevia held onto. The amount she measured out stopped her a foot from the ground. Letting go of the rope Trevia casually walked out into the city. The moon rose in a thin crescent, its dim light shadowed the streets. Oil lamps hung on street posts lighting what the lunar rays tried to cover up.

Trevia walked through the streets with out warrant. Simply trying to escape the thoughts of her life plaguing her mind. That was until a crash brought her mind back at full attention. A group of bandits came running out of a alley way. Each of them carrying a sack of items. They stopped in front of her.

"Looks like there are some more mouths we'll need to silence tonight." One said

Trevia cracked her knuckles. Standing firm she waited for her opponents to make the first move. Then they did. One came at her with a fist to punch her. Dropping low she swung a leg out tripping him. As he fell forward she shot an arm up into his falling chest. She left him out cold on the ground.

"So, a damn adventurer. I know how to deal with your kind." Another bandit said

He drew a knife. Holding it out he lunged at her. She stuck both her hands out. Twisting them around the hand that held the blade she snapped them breaking his hand. She kicked the knife out of the way. Before he could try to run or attack, it didn't really matter. Trevia snapped her hand along his neck. The sudden shock knocked him out as well. The other bandits that saw how Trevia took two out in mere seconds turned dropped their loot and ran.

Trevia sighed. Feeling much better about her self she started heading back for the mansion.

The next day the bandits regrouped. The leader sat in the slums of an abandoned house.

"We would have made off with so much stuff if it weren't for that wench." One of the bandits told

"Don't worry about it. Two of our comrades are gone. But we will have our revenge. What did this wench look like?" The leader asked

"Well… she was a Mithra. A very skilled one too." A random bandit said

The leader stood up.

"A Mithra huh… Word spreads fast in the city. It must be her wedding the royals of this city are fussing about." The leader said. "We'll have our revenge soon enough."

Days passed until the day of the wedding. But all was going to plan. The days leading up to this event everyone had noticed Trevia had been more distant then usual. She had not seen or spoken to Jeren. Then, she had just up and disappeared.

"Where did she get too?" Arcadia worried She was running around the estate with all of the staff actively looking for a trace of her.

Olose just watched from afar.

"Where did she go?" Jeren asked. "I hope this didn't drive her away again."

Olose just laughed.

"You guys worry too much. She's too brave to have cold feet on a day like this." Olose said

Suse was out in the garden watching butterflies flutter around in the wind. Then Arcadia rushed passed her.

"Suse. Have you seen Trevia?" Arcadia asked

"Yes. This morning I did." Suse said, obviously distracted by the butterflies floating around

"You have!" Why didn't you tell anyone?" Arcadia said flustered

"I forgot." Suse said

In the city Trevia walked around freely. She wasn't dressed in her normal armor. She had plain clothing. Long pants a shirt and a straw hat. She easily blended in with everyone around her. Slowly walking down to the tailors she wanted to go over some last minute alterations to her dress. A hour or two later she walked out with a box. Her dress was neatly packed away inside. It was almost noon. Surprised by the time Trevia hurried back towards the mansion. That was, until she ran into someone. Knocked backwards she straightened herself out. She quickly apologized and tried to get back on her way.

"Wait, you think just saying your sorry is going to pass? You have to give us more then that as compensation of knocking over our boss." A thug said

"Yeah, like all the money you have." Another thug chimed in

"Sorry, I don't have any with me. These pants don't have any pockets." Trevia shrugged

"Alright then. We'll take what ever is in the box." One thug said reaching for the box Trevia held

Well, he tried anyway. Trevia shot a hand out gripping his wrist. Pinching the nerves in key points the thug dropped to the ground in pain.

"Now that wasn't very smart was it?" Trevia said

As she did this all of the thugs drew their weapons. Subconsciously Trevia reached of her sword. But today she went out without any of her equipment. Rather then fight her way out she decided to run. Quickly she took off in the opposite direction of the gang. The thugs took chase after her. The leader stood there laughing.

"Today should be a great opportunity to test my new toy from Bastok." He said

The leader of the gang drew a single shot rifle. Making sure it was loaded he too started after Trevia.

Trevia was taking back alleys trying to turn around and start heading back to Arcadia's mansion. Unable to spot where the gang was coming from she just kept running. A few blocks ahead she came to an open alleyway. Running out of it she stopped. The gang had surrounded her. They closed off the circle leaving her in the middle. Unable to waste time she ran towards the closest ones. She kicked one in the face. Sending him down the others moved in on her. She spun around slamming a foot into the one next to the thug she had just taken out. But once she did Trevia noticed that all the thugs moved away from her. Turning to start running again she heard an explosion. Then a searing pain engulfed her arm. She screamed in pain. Panicked Trevia ran blindly away.

The rest of the thugs were about to chase after her when the leader spoke up.

"No need to rush my friends." He said while reloading the rifle. "She has been so kind to leave us a trail to follow."

The leader of the thugs pointed down to a trail of blood. It lead an ever-growing path to Trevia.

Trevia was blindly running through the streets. The wound in her arm was bleeding heavily. With a hand over it she tried to slow the bleeding. After a few blocks of running she stopped. Putting a hand on the wall next to her she saw how much blood was running down her arm. Leaving a red handprint on the wall she continued to find her way back to Arcadia's mansion. A few more blocks and Trevia knew she was lost. Light headed she couldn't think clearly. Turning down on alley Trevia stopped, unable to go on anymore. She was exhausted and drowsy. Her vision was getting blurry. That is when she turned and sat down. Leaning against the wall behind her Trevia put the box on her lap. Brushing the hair from her eyes she looked up.

"Sorry Jeren, guess I won't be making it back after all…"

Trevia lowered her head and closed her eyes.

A few minutes later the gang had followed the tail of blood to the alley Trevia lied in.

"So. There she is." The leader spoke

He held the single shot rifle in his hands. Aiming it at Trevia he spoke again.

"How nice of you to leave use a trail to follow. It made finding you all the easier." He said

From behind the group stepped a figure.

"Who said that trail was just for you?"

The gang turned around to see a man dressed in a worn leather jacket. His pants were dress slacks making him stand out more then usual.

"Who are you?" The leader yelled

He looked over and past the group of thugs seeing Trevia bleeding along the wall. He emitted a low growl. The leader pointed the rifle at Olose.

"Those bullets wouldn't happen to be made of sliver would they?" Olose asked

The leader fired at Olose. The bullet tore through his jacket. Boring through his skin and out his back. The wound didn't bleed, the hole closed up as quick as it opened.

"I'll take that as a no then." Olose said

He dashed out grabbing one of the thugs by the face. With a single arm he picked him up and slammed him into another thug. As the leader struggled to reload the rifle his minions were dropping like flies. Pulling back the hammer the leader locked it in place. Raising his arm he pointed the gun at Olose. He stood there brushing himself off.

"Didn't we already go through with this?" Olose asked

The leader shot again, but this time Olose dodged the bullet. As the shell hit the wall behind him Olose slammed a fist into the leaders face. Breaking his nose he passed out from shock.

As he dropped to the ground Olose ran over to Trevia. She sat there leaning against the wall holding a box.

"Heh, aren't you glad I came looking for you?" Olose joked

Trevia didn't answer.

"Alright lets get you home. You have Jeren waiting for you." Olose said

Trevia still didn't answer.

Olose nudged Trevia's cheek. She felt cold. Pushing a little harder, she just fell over. The blood drained out of Olose's face at this sight. Quickly he picked Trevia up and started running back to Arcadia's mansion.

_A half moon hung overhead. Trevia stared up into the stars. Slowly her mind was numbing. Looking back down at her hands she started to shake._

"_Blood, the scent of blood will never leave these hands." Trevia said to herself_

_She started to shake. Trying to gather herself, Trevia stood up._

"_I have to get through this. I have to be strong." Trevia said to herself_

_Brushing tears from her eyes she put a hand on the sword attached to her side. Moving forward she had to let go of her conscience. _

_As years passed Trevia let more of herself go as she covered it with scars and calluses. Walking with an aura of shadows and rage she walked alone. Until one job. Sent to assassinate a man in his sleep. Easy enough, until she was thrown out of a window by her tail. Being her first defeat it was the first time she felt scared and alone. This only made her close herself more. Then she met this man again. Not for a confrontation, just a new line of work. Trevia's time with man slowly unraveled her life. But this only brought more pain to her heart to feel safe with others. The people Trevia sailed with only felt uneasy with her aboard. Cold, silent, Trevia just took to herself. Slowly opening up to the people around her. More time passed until a single sheet of paper sent her into shock._

_A single letter sent to her by her mother. Trevia hated her mother. When Trevia was bound to be wed she ran. Banished from her home Trevia only resented them more. At first it was anger that made Trevia refuse the invitation back. But soon she realized it was fear. Fear, for that fact that she had tried so hard to repress her past, to not dwell on what had happened so she may move on and always continue forward. Trevia had forgotten about her real self._

_Meeting the man she was to be marrying, more of her lost life came back to her. Guilt. Overwhelming guilt took over her. But Trevia didn't know why._

_A forgotten promise. Her only known love only wanted for his friend to return. Only to find a jaded soul in the body of his love._

_Her time with this man brought upon betrayal. But through an act of cowardice showed Trevia what she forgot. The ice that covered Trevia's heart slowly started to melt._

_Looking into the eyes of her childhood friend, Trevia grew out of her old lifestyle. She didn't want to admit it but of the emotions she had lost the last one that came back to her was the love of her friends, and the man she would marry._

_Her mind snapped. Flashes of what happened refreshed her memory. Trevia could see herself dieing. She had failed to uphold a promise to Jeren. Getting herself killed._

"_No… I can't… I won't let this be the end…" Trevia thought_

Olose could see the gates of the mansion. He only rushed more.

"…let me go…" Trevia whispered

Olose stopped.

"Trevs'?" Olose asked

"Put me down…" Trevia said

Slowly Olose set Trevia down. Shaky, Trevia tried to stand. Falling against Olose, he helped her walk back to the mansion. She was pale, Trevia was on the verge of fainting from over working. Her mind was absent from the blood loss.

"Need some help?" A female voice asked

Olose turned to see a female Elvaan dressed elaborately.

"Astra. Good timing." Olose said. "I need you to use some of that white magic to help a friend of mine."

Astra saw Trevia. Looking at the bloody hole in her arm she started casting. A light blue aura surrounded Trevia. The wound on her arm closed up leaving only a scar. Trevia no longer felt faint. Blinking Trevia look around. Her clothes were soaked with her own blood.

"Well as attractive as this is… I think I'll have to change." Trevia said

"Well, don't let me stop you." Olose joked handing her the box she almost lost her life over. Olose was waiting for Trevia to scowl at him.

"I don't think your wife will be to happy with that." Trevia joked back

Olose looked at Trevia.

"Are you ok? I think all that blood you lost affected your brain." Olose said

Trevia laughed, which only confused Olose more. Holding the box she rushed off to her room. Quickly changing into the dress she buttoned it up. It was silver. The design was longer then anything she had worn before. Two straps held the dress up. It was open leading down closing just above the small of her back. There was a smaller hole that let her tail out. The tails of her dress flowed freely. The front shimmered in the light. She had two earrings and a necklace. Pawing at it she had to make sure to stay away from Olose with it. Arcadia had given her some of her jewelry, all of it being silver. For Arcadia couldn't wear it anymore. Snapping back into reality Trevia rushed out of her room and ran downstairs. Rushing out through the courtyard doors there everyone had already assembled and sat down. At the alter there stood all of the brides maids and Jeren next to the priest. Grabbing her dress she pulled part of it up as she rushed up the carpet. Getting to the end Trevia blushed, heavily. Feeling the eyes of everyone on her she spoke nervously.

"Sorry, I thought I would be fashionably late." Trevia said

She turned to the priest. Jeren smiled as the two stood proudly starting the service. Minutes passed until the priest spoke.

"Now is the time to exchange the bands." The priest spoke

Trevia and Jeren looked at one another. Pausing they both asked.

"Who brought the rings?"

Olose rushed up and reached into his pockets. Pulling two small boxes he handed them to the couple.

"Sorry bout that, forgot I had them." Olose said

The two put the rings on. Finishing the ceremony the crowd erupted with cheers as the celebrations started. The band started playing as everyone was swept towards the center of the courtyard. Fancy music played as everyone started dancing around one another. Leaving Jeren and Trevia in the middle of it all. Standing motionless Trevia felt embarrassed. Smiling Jeren lifted Trevia's hand to his shoulder as he took her other hand. Placing his just above her hip he told her just to follow his motions.

"So… tell me. Why were you late today?" Jeren asked

Trevia looked down, breathing deeply she sighed as she spoke.

"I just ran into 12 little problems on the way back form the tailors. I'm just lucky I have a werewolf for a friend." Trevia said

The two continued dancing. Moments later Trevia's mind kept pondering the moments of the afternoon. As her mind thought about it the more it showed. Slowly Trevia started to shake in fear. Jeren quickly picked up on it. Trying to not draw any more attention to her Jeren pulled Trevia in close to him. Resting her head on his chest he saw the scar that was barely exposed by her dress.

"I… I almost didn't make it here." Trevia's voice shook as she spoke. "I almost died today."

Trevia was on the verge of crying. Jeren held her close rocking her. Trying to comfort Trevia Jeren tried his best. Then he had a thought.

"When you first left I was heart broken. I never thought I would see you again. I was depressed. But my mom would sing this song to me every time I wanted to see you and I knew I couldn't." Jeren said softly

He raised a hand over his head signaling the band. They swiftly started playing a melodic ballad, deep and dark but soothing.

Everyone started dancing with the tune, as Jeren started singing to Trevia,

"I… I came here by day… but I left here in darkness, and found you… found you on the way…"

They stepped softly as they rocked slowly with the beat.

"And now… it is silver and silent, it is silver and cold… you, in somber resplendence, I hold."

The beat started up as everyone picked up a pace not suiting a slow dance.

"Your sins into me. Oh, my beautiful one. Your sins into me. As a rapturous voice escapes I will tremble a prayer, I'll beg for forgiveness. Yours sins into me. Oh, my beautiful one."

As fast as its beat quickened it slowed down once again.

"Light… like the flutter of wings… feel your hollow voice rushing, into me, as your longing to sing…"

Still turning with the beat they start a new pattern as the band starts to pick up again.

"So I… I will paint you in silver… I'll wrap you in cold… I will lift up your voice as I sink."

The pace quickly dropped. At a stand still only a simply melody that the song was played around resonated in the air. Jeren looked into the teary eyes of his lovely wife.

"Cold in life's throws… I'll fall asleep for you…"

Trevia brought a hand up to wipe the tears from one eye. Jeren brushed the rest away as he kissed her.

"Cold in life's throws… I only ask you turn away…"

Jeren put his arms around Trevia as she stopped shaking. From her body Jeren could hear a soft purring.

"Cold in life's throws… I'll fall asleep for you…"

Trevia let go of her fear. She could finally feel safe. In the arms of Jeren Trevia didn't worry anymore.

"Cold in life's throws… I only ask your turn… as they seep, into me… Oh, my beautiful one…"

**The song "Silver and Cold" is under full rights of AFI. Please don't sue.**

**Author's Note: What, another one? Yes, you see, me and TheFrogKiller kinda thought it would be fun if we did an author's note like the ones you get where it's a big running conversation between the two of us. So this is a conversation we had on AIM with the aim (hehe, pun) of being author's notes. Urm, we're strange. This I know.**

**TheFrogKiller: I guess it would be best to start out with the normal "Thank you for reading"**

**Vivli: Yeah, that's a nice place to start. So urm, yeah, thanks!**

**TheFrogKiller: Then I was going to throw the idea of asking people where I had used the song before.**

**Vivli: You realise I'm gonna use this conversation now as the notes?**

**TheFrogKiller: Go for it.**

**Vivli: Urm, yeah, spot where he used the song before! Or, ya know, don't, if you don't want too...**

**Vivli: Yeah, since you wrote this, you say some stuff**

**TheFrogKiller: Dammit..**

**Vivli: I wrote the rest of the story, but this one is entirely your's (that's why it's suddenly a lot better than the other chapters).**

**TheFrogKiller: (I'm going to use this whole conversation)**

**TheFrogKiller: Sure I wrote the whole thing, doesn't that mean I get some time to you know... not write?**

**Vivli: Well yeah, but this was your idea!**

**TheFrogKiller: True... wait.. Dammit.**

**TheFrogKiller: Okay... how about this. 10 points to the first person who can tell me where I used the song "Silver and cold" before... I'm looking at you Viv.**

**Vivli: That's not fair though, 'coz I'm the only one in this conversation!**

**Vivli: That and you told me the answer...**

**TheFrogKiller: Wait.. Give our audience some time to think it over…**

**Vivli: I think we should have challenged them to 'spot all the references' in the story...come to think of it, that would be a LONG list!**

**TheFrogKiller: Or how about all of the influences?**

**Vivli: Yeah, same thing . **

**TheFrogKiller: From our two stories I couldn't even count them all.**

**Vivli: I forget all of them...**

**Vivli: Although some aren't my fault! Bootus had a go at me for stealing things in that Guild Wars story when I really didn't...**

**TheFrogKiller: What's sad is that I get a majority of them from my own sick mind…**

**Vivli: I've even stolen ideas from your stories before!**

**TheFrogKiller: i mean.. this stuff i put my characters through... you can't make that stuff up.**

**TheFrogKiller: Yeah you did.**

**TheFrogKiller: I've filed the court order to restrain you from doing that anymore.**

**Vivli: This story was a new challenge to me, 'coz no longer could I rely on 'how can I screw over Vivli more' as the thing that drives the plot...**

**TheFrogKiller: Now you get to screw Olose.**

**TheFrogKiller: Wait..**

**Vivli: ...**

**TheFrogKiller: That came out wrong!**

**Vivli: Yeah, I was about to say…**

**Vivli: There must have been something wrong with me anyway. Everybody always makes their character really cool and heroic and strong and stuff. My character is always the one who ends up in really bad situations...**

**Vivli: And is generally a total wuss...**

**TheFrogKiller: Well look on this side of things,**

**TheFrogKiller: I keep torturing all of mine.**

**Vivli: True...**

**Vivli: I killed a baby though! That has to count for something on the sadistic side!**

**TheFrogKiller: Count how many times Angel has either died or hurt to the point she wishes she had died.**

**Vivli: She's like Buffy!**

**Vivli: Urm, I don't actually watch that show...**

**TheFrogKiller: And I killed her daughter…**

**TheFrogKiller: All of her friends…**

**Vivli: But I've heard about it enough to know that Buffy keeps dieing and coming back**

**TheFrogKiller: And plagued her with Vivli!**

**Vivli: Well, if you look at it this way, I killed the entire cast of Twilight!**

**Vivli: ...**

**Vivli: Nothing's wrong with Vivli!**

**Vivli: Urm, not that I behave like that in real life...**

**Vivli: So not that I should care...**

**TheFrogKiller: I'm sure...**

**The rest of this conversation is mysteriously missing. Some would say it's because it involved me making a fool out of myself. I say we ignore the people who say that .**

**Anyway, thanks for reading. Again, in case you forgot, this was TheFrogKiller's work, not mine! I may add a bonus chapter or two of my own at some point, representing some of the characters and their thoughts, but for now, this is TheFrogKiller's chapter.**

**Feel free to e-mail either of us at our respective e-mail addresses (which for some reason I'm not allowed to put in this document 'coz then it vanishes, so you'll have to use our profiles to find them)t****o ask questions and stuff. TheFrogKiller is planning to write a story involving vampires, werewolves, cool scary stuff like that, so you can ask him about that, or give me suggestions for bonus sections to this. Want to see a character and how she or he handles the situation after the end? Just ask me!**

**Thanks for reading!**


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